&EPA
Office of Environmental
United States Information
Environmental Protection Agency Washington, DC 20460
May 2000
EPA-745-R-00-003
EPCRA Section 313
Questions and Answers Addendum
for Federal Facilities
Revised 1999 Version
Section 313 of the
Emergency Planning and
Community Right-to-Know Act
Toxic Chemical Release Inventory
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
TABLE OF CONTENTS
TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION 1
A. Purpose of Document 1
B. EPCRA Background 2
C. Executive Order 13148 Background 3
Section 1. DETERMINING WHETHER OR NOT TO REPORT: FACILITY 5
A. Implementation of Executive Order 13148 5
B. Definition of Federal Agency 6
C. Definition of Federal Facility 6
D. Multi-Agency Federal Facilities 10
E. Applicability to Government-Owned, Contractor Operated (GOCO) Facilities . 11
F. Form R Requirements 12
G. Employee Threshold 14
H. Activity Threshold Determinations 14
I. Source Reduction and Recycling 18
J. Other Issues 18
Section 2. EXEMPTIONS 21
A. General 21
B. National Security Exemption 21
C. Motor Vehicle Exemption 23
D. Articles Exemption 24
E. De Minimis 25
F. Laboratory Exemption 26
G. Personal Use Exemption 29
H. Structural Component Exemption 31
I. Routine Janitorial or Facility Grounds Maintenance Use Exemption 32
J. Water Intake/Compressed Air Use Exemption 33
K. Other Issues 33
Section 3. DETERMINING WHETHER OR NOT TO REPORT: LISTED TOXIC
CHEMICALS 35
Section 4. COMPLETING THE FORM R: RELEASES AND WASTE MANAGEMENT
CALCULATIONS 37
A. General 37
B. Releases 38
C. Transfers to Off-Site Locations 40
D. Source Reduction and Recycling 41
E. Other Issues 42
Sections. FORM A AND FORM R SUBMISSIONS
Section 6. SUPPLIER NOTIFICATION
45
49
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TABLE OF CONTENTS 1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
APPENDIX A. GLOSSARY 51
APPENDIX B. EPA REGIONAL CONTACTS 55
APPENDIX C. EXECUTIVE ORDER 13148 59
INDEX. KEY WORDS BY QUESTION NUMBER 73
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
INTRODUCTION
INTRODUCTION
A. Purpose of Document
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has prepared this revised
1999 EPCRA section 313 Questions and Answers Addendum for Federal
Facilities to help clarify the reporting requirements for federal facilities
under section 313 of the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-
Know Act (EPCRA, or Title III of the Superfund Amendments and Re-
authorization Act of 1986, Public Law 99-499). This addendum should
be used with the EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers Revised
1998 Version, which addresses reporting requirements for all facilities. The
EPCRA section 313 program is also referred to as the Toxics Release
Inventory or TRI. Use this document as guidance beginning with the 1999
reporting year for reports due July 1, 2000. This manual should be used in
conjunction with the statute and regulations but does not supersede them.
The guidance provided in this document addresses the very specific circum-
stances stated in each question. Accordingly, the reader should consult
other applicable documents, including: the EPCRA Section 313 Questions
and Answers Revised 1998 Version, the EPCRA statute, the Code of
Federal Regulations (CFR), relevant preamble language, and the current
Toxic Chemical Release Inventory Reporting Forms and Instructions.
Under section 313, facilities are required to report releases and other waste
management of specifically listed chemicals. They also are required to re-
port transfers of EPCRA section 313 chemicals for waste management to
off-site locations.
Reports under section 313 (EPA Form R or Form A) must be submitted
annually to EPA and to designated state (or tribal) agencies. Reports are
due by July 1 of each year and cover activities at the facility during the
previous calendar year.
The Agency developed this document to facilitate facility reporting and to
provide additional explanation of the reporting requirements. This docu-
ment supplements the instructions for completing the Form R and the
Alternate Threshold Certification Statement (Form A).
Copies of EPA's Form R, instructions for completing the Form, and related
guidance documents are available from the National Center for Environ-
mental Publications and Information (NCEPI), P.O. Box 42419, Cincinnati,
Ohio 45242-2419. Additional information may be obtained by accessing
EPA's TRI Homepage on the Internet at http://www.epa.gov/opptintr/tri or
calling the EPCRA Hotline at (800) 424-9346. In the Washington, D.C.
area call (703) 412-9810.
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INTRODUCTION
1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
The questions and answers in this document are organized in sections as
listed in the table of contents on the following pages. There is also an
expanded keyword index at the end of this document. The terms in the
index are also found in the sidebar of the document near relevant questions.
B. EPCRA Background
EPCRA consists of five major provisions. The first, emergency planning,
established an infrastructure at the state and local levels for developing a
comprehensive planning process to address potential chemical hazards.
Under EPCRA section 302, facilities are required to participate in this
planning process by notifying the local emergency planning committees
(LEPCs) and state emergency response commissions (SERCs) if the facility
has present at any one time a quantity of an extremely hazardous substance
(EHS) at or above a specific threshold planning quantity (TPQ). Facilities
must also designate a coordinator who will participate with the LEPC in the
emergency planning process. Under EPCRA section 303(d)(3), facilities
may be required to provide planning information upon the request of the
LEPC. This information could include facility contingency plans, standard
operating procedures, Material Safety Data Sheets, hazard assessments,
and site plans.
EPCRA section 304 mandates that notice of releases of CERCLA hazard-
ous substances and EHSs be given immediately to SERCs and LEPCs for
the areas likely to be affected by the release. After the initial notification, a
written follow-up notice is required. There are various notification issues
under this requirement that have confused many facilities, including exemp-
tions for federally permitted releases, reduced reporting for contin-uous
releases, and the difference between EPCRA section 304 reporting and
release reporting under CERCLA section 103.
Under EPCRA sections 311 and 312, information on hazardous chemicals
is provided to emergency planners and the public on the hazards those
chemicals pose and the site-specific details on how they are handled by
facilities. To fulfill these reporting requirements, chemical inventory infor-
mation is essential to identifying chemicals covered and for completing the
section 312 Tier 11 reports.
Under EPCRA section 313, facilities must report to EPA and the appro-
priate state agency their releases and off-site transfers of listed chemicals if
the facility exceeds specified thresholds for "manufacturing, processing or
otherwise use" of the chemical. Under the Pollution Prevention Act (PPA),
facilities reporting under EPCRA section 313 must also provide informa-
tion on the waste management practices and on source reduction activities
involving reportable listed chemicals.
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
INTRODUCTION
C. Executive Order 13148 Background
Executive Order (EO) 13148 requires federal agencies to comply with the
provisions of the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act
(EPCRA) and the PPA of 1990. EO 13148 requires:
• Compliance with emergency planning and community right-to-know
provisions under sections 301 through 312 of EPCRA, all implement-
ing regulations, and future amendments to these authorities in light of
any applicable guidance provided by EPA;
• Compliance with TRI reporting provisions under section 313 of
EPCRA, Section 6607 of the PPA, all implementing regulations, and
future amendments to these authorities in light Of applicable guidance
provided by EPA without regard to SIC code limitations;
• Development of an agency pollution prevention strategy, including a
pollution prevention policy statement outlining the agency's commit-
ment to incorporate pollution prevention through source reduction in
facility management and acquisition; and a commitment to utilize
source reduction as the primary means of achieving and maintaining
compliance with all applicable federal, state, and local environmental
requirements;
• Development of agency goals to reduce total releases (on-site and off-
site) and transfers off-site for treatment of EPCRA section 313 chemi-
cals by 40% by December 31, 2006 using the 2001 reporting year as a
baseline.
• Development of use reduction goals for toxic chemicals, hazardous
substances and other pollutants using a list of 15 priority chemicals
identified by a workgroup including EPA and other federal agencies;
committing to goals of 50% or greater by the 2006 reporting year us-
ing the 2001 reporting year as a baseline;
• Federal facilities to be leaders and responsible members of their com-
munities by informing the public and their workers of possible sources
of pollution resulting from facility operations.
EO 13148 requires federal agencies to comply with EPCRA. EO 13148
does not alter or remove any existing legal obligation of the private con-
tractor of a government owned, contractor operated (GOCO) federal facil-
ity to report. EPCRA requires reporting by the owner or operator of a
facility. This means that although the federal agency with control of a
covered GOCO facility will report under EPCRA as required under EO
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INTRODUCTION
1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
13148; a contractor operating the facility who is already subject to EPCRA
still is legally responsible for submission of signed and certified EPCRA
reports in a comprehensive and timely manner.
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
SECTION 1
EO 13148
EO 13148,
EPCRA Hotline
EO 13148
Compliance Re-
quirements
EO 13148
Compliance
Requirements
Section 1. DETERMINING WHETHER OR NOT TO REPORT:
FACILITY
A. Implementation of Executive Order 13148
1. When was Executive Order 13148 signed, and when was it pub-
lished in the Federal Register?
Executive Order 13148, "Greening the Government Through Leadership in
Environmental Management," was signed by President Clinton on April 21,
2000. The Order was published in the Federal Register on April 26, 2000
(65 FR 24595). This Executive Order supersedes EO 12856, originally
signed August 3, 1993.
2. What phone number can people call to receive information on EO
13148?
To receive information on EO 13148, federal facilities can call the
Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Information Hotline
at 1-800-424-9346.
3. If state right-to-know laws are more stringent than EPCRA, must
federal facilities comply with the state right-to-know requirements and
EPCRA requirements as well?
No. EO 13148 does not require federal facilities to comply with state and
local right-to-know requirements that are more stringent than EPCRA
requirements. However, federal facilities are encouraged to be "leaders and
responsible members of their communities by informing the public and their
workers of possible sources of pollution resulting from facility operations."
In addition, EO 13148 does not remove any reporting obligation for private
sector facilities or federal facilities if the state right-to-know laws require
compliance by those facilities.
4. Can EPA fine a federal facility if the facility does not comply with
EO 13148?
No. EO 13148 does not give EPA the authority to fine federal facilities.
However, section 406 authorizes EPA to conduct reviews and inspections
of federal facilities as necessary to monitor compliance with TRI, pollution
prevention, and community right-to-know reporting requirements as set out
in Part 5. Section 406(c) requires EPA to report annually to the President
on federal agency compliance with sections 501 and 504 of the Executive
Order.
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SECTION 1
1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
Background
Reporting
Thresholds
Federal Agency
Federal Agency
Facility
5. When did federal facilities begin reporting under EPCRA section
313?
Federal facilities were required to report under EPCRA section 313 no later
than the 1994 reporting year. Some federal facilities, however, began re-
porting voluntarily before the 1994 reporting year.
6. What are the minimum criteria for a facility to meet that could re-
sult in the agency's having to comply with EO 13148 for that facility'!
A federal facility must comply with EPCRA section 313 if the total number
of work hours at the facility meets or exceeds 20,000 in a year (roughly
equal to 10 or more full time employees), and the facility meets or exceeds
"manufacture, " "process, " or "otherwise use " thresholds for an EPCRA
section 313 chemical. Federal facilities must include the activities of
GOCO facilities located at the federal facility when making their threshold
and other waste management determinations.
B. Definition of Federal Agency
7. Executive Order 13148 requires federal agencies to comply with
EPCRA section 313 and section 6607 of PPA. What is a "federal
agency?"
"Federal agency" is equivalent to an "Executive agency" as defined in 5
USC 105. Title 5 USC 105 defines an "Executive agency" as "an Execu-
tive department [including military departments under the auspices of the
Department of Defense], a Government corporation and an independent
establishment'' Examples of federal agencies are the Department of De-
fense (DOD), the Department of Interior (DOT), the Tennessee Valley Au-
thority (TVA), and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
(NASA).
8. How should a federal facility determine if it is a "federal agency,"
and, therefore, subject to comply with EO 13148?
It is the responsibility of each federal agency to make sure that its facilities
have fulfilled their obligation to comply with the EO. If a federal facility is
unsure whether its agency meets the criteria for a "federal agency" as de-
fined in Title 5 U.S.C., then the facility should consult its general counsel.
C. Definition of Federal Facility
9. What is a federal "facility" for EPCRA purposes?
EPCRA section 329(a) defines "facility" as "all buildings, equipment,
structures, and other stationary items which are located on a single site or
on contiguous or adjacent sites and which are owned or operated by the
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
SECTION 1
Facility,
Tribal Issues
Facility
Contractors,
Threshold
Determination
Landlord/Real
Estate Interest
same person (or by any person which controls, is controlled by, or under
common control with, such person.)"
10. If the Bureau of Indian Affairs operates a facility on a reservation,
is the facility subject to EPCRA requirements as a result of Executive
Order 13148?
Yes. The Bureau of Indian Affairs is part of the Department of Interior
(DOI), which is a federal agency. If the facility meets the activity threshold
requirements under EPCRA section 313, then the facility must report. The
facility should submit reports both to EPA and to the state, unless the
American Indian tribe has chosen to act independently of the state for the
purpose of section 313 reporting. If this is the case, the facility should
submit reports to the tribal emergency response commission (TERC), or
until the TERC is established, the Chief Executive Officer of the Indian
tribe, as well as to EPA.
11. What states or territories are covered by Executive Order 13148?
Section 902(b) states that "[t]his order applies to Federal facilities in any
state of the United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of
Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the United States Virgin Islands, the
Northern Mariana Islands, and any other territory or possession over which
the United States has jurisdiction." In addition, the Executive Order
encour-ages federal facilities outside these areas to "be leaders and
responsible members in their communities" (section 203) by making "best
efforts to comply with the goals of this order at those facilities." (Section
902(b)).
12. Should a facility's contracted and/or subcontracted work off-site
at a non-federally owned or operated facility be included in its thresh-
hold determinations and release and other waste management calcula-
tions?
No. Work conducted for a federal agency at a non-federally owned or
operated facility is not subject to threshold determinations and release and
other waste management calculations. Federal agencies are only responsi-
ble for reporting on activities conducted by or for the federal agency at fed-
erally owned or operated sites.
13. Are office buildings owned by the General Services Administra-
tion (GSA) or any other federal agency considered "facilities" under
Executive Order 13148?
Yes. The General Services Administration is a federal agency as defined in
EO 13148. Because any building would be considered a "facility" or part
of a "facility" under EPCRA section 329(4), any EPCRA section 313
chemicals used in an office building owned or operated by GSA (or any
other agency) could be subject to threshold determinations and release and
other waste management calculations under EPCRA section 313.
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SECTION 1
1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
Landlord/Real
Estate Interest
Landlord/Real
Estate Interest,
Royalty Fees
Landlord/Real
Estate Interest
Multi-
Jurisdiction Re-
porting
14. An agency is operating out of a building that is maintained,
leased, or owned by the General Services Administration. Who is
responsible for reporting under EPCRA section 313?
Under EPCRA section 313, the owner or operator of & facility is responsi-
ble for reporting. If the owner of the facility has a "landlord or real estate
interest only" in the operations conducted at the facility, then the obligation
for reporting falls to the operator who typically has the most knowledge of
any EPCRA section 313 chemicals used at the facility. In this example, the
agency is the operator and responsible for making threshold determinations
and release and other waste management calculations assuming that GSA
had a "landlord or real estate interest only" in the facility.
15. A sodium salt mining/aci/iYy is located on part of a Bureau of
Land Management (BLM) facility. The mining/aci'/iYy pays BLM a
leasing fee plus a royalty fee based on the amount of sodium it ex-
tracts. In addition, the mining/aci'/iYy provided BLM with a bonus
bid for the right to locate at the ELM. facility. BLM accepted the
bonus bid after assessing the fair market value of the sodium salt
deposits and the value of the BLM land. Does the ELM. facility have
more than a "real estate interest" in the sodium salt mining/aci'/iYy?
Yes. The collection of both royalties and bonus bids, with the requirement
that BLM conduct assessments of the fair market value of the sodium salt
deposits, shows that BLM has more than a real estate interest in the loca-
tion of the sodium salt mmingfacility at the BLM facility. In addition, LM
is required by federal laws to make leasing arrangements with the sodium
salt mmingfacility based on the presence, or potential presence, of sodium
salt deposits at the BLMfacility.
16. The Resolution Trust Corporation (RTC) takes possession of an
EPCRA section 313 covered facility that defaults on a loan. Is RTC
subject to the reporting requirements under EPCRA section 313?
If RTC has only a "landlord or real-estate interest" in the facility's opera-
tion, then it is not subject to EPCRA section 313 reporting requirements
(40 CFR 372.38(e)). If, however, RTC takes over the facility's operations,
then it is subject to EPCRA section 313 reporting requirements.
17. To what governmental entities should federal facilities with oper-
ations that straddle state or local jurisdictional lines report under
EPCRA?
The facility should report to all appropriate states or local jurisdictions in
which the federal facility is fully or partially located.
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
SECTION 1
Vessels, Facility
Facility,
Establishment,
SIC Code
Facility,
Establishment
18. When is a vessel part of a federal facility under EO 13148?
A vessel is part of a federal facility when it is located within the boundaries
of that facility. This would include vessels in dry dock at a federal facility.
A federal facility is not responsible for including EPCRA section 313 chem-
icals associated with a vessel in threshold determinations and release and
other waste management calculations if the vessel is located in a public
waterway. The use of any toxic chemicals for the maintenance of this
vessel, if it is motorized, may be exempted under the motor vehicle exemp-
tion.
19. A federal facility is composed of two separate establishments that
are filing separate Form Rs for section 313 reporting. For Part I,
section 4.5, what SIC codes should the facility list?
Each establishment ("distinct and separate economic activities [e.g,
separate SIC codes] [that] are performed at a single location") at a federal
facility has the option of filing separately under EPCRA section 313, as
long as all the releases and other waste management activities at the entire
facility are accounted for. In addition, the threshold determinations must
be made for the entire facility, not for each establishment. If & facility is
filing separate Form Rs for each establishment, enter in Facility Identifica-
tion , Part I, section 4.5 of the Form R report, only the SIC code of the
establishment for which data is included in the report. The SIC code for
the other establishments at the federal facility would be included in the
Form R reports for those establishments. Also, managers should check
that the establishment is "part of a facility" in Facility Identification, Part I,
section 4.2 of the Form R report.
20. An agency has buildings and other stationary structures located
on multiple properties. All of the properties are contiguous and
adjacent to each other. These contiguous and adjacent properties
comprise vast tracts of land (e.g., most of Western Colorado). Are
these buildings and other stationary structures which are owned or
operated by one agency but managed by several district offices and
located on contiguous or adjacent properties one agency facility for
EPCRA section 313 reporting purposes?
Yes. All of the buildings and other stationary items located on multiple
contiguous or adjacent properties are part of one facility for EPCRA
reporting. Therefore, the amount of each EPCRA section 313 chemical
manufactured, processed, or otherwise used and the number of employees
must be aggregated for all of these contiguous or adjacent properties to
determine whether the entire facility meets reporting thresholds.
A manager of an individual establishment, however, does have the option
of filing as a separate establishment within a multi-establishment facility.
The establishment would make its release and other waste management
calculations and report the information on the separate Form R. If a mana-
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SECTION 1
1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
Facility,
Multiple
Establishments
Multiple
Establishments,
Facility, Federal
Agency
ger chooses to file a Form R report for an establishment, he or she must
check that the establishment is "part of & facility" in Facility Identification,
Part I, section 4.2 of the Form R report. While the establishment can make
separate release and other waste management calculations from the rest of
the facility, the threshold determinations must be based on the entire
facility.
21. Federally-owned military bases may be occupied by multiple
Department of Defense organizations. For example, operations may
be simultaneously conducted by the U.S. Marine Corps, the U.S.
Army, and the U.S. Navy at a military base. For EPCRA reporting
purposes, would this base be considered one facility or three separate
facilities'!
For purposes of EO 13148, military departments are covered under the
auspices of the Department of Defense, a federal agency. This means that
the entire base, regardless of whether multiple DOD organizations conduct
operations on the property, is one facility for the purposes of EPCRA
reporting, and quantities of EPCRA section 313 chemicals would be
aggregated across the facility for making threshold determinations. DOD
is ultimately responsible for ensuring that all non-exempt releases and other
waste management activities of the reportable EPCRA section 313 chemi-
cal are accounted for in the individual Form R reports.
D. Multi-Agency Federal Facilities
22. Who is responsible for EPCRA section 313 reporting when
multiple federal agencies conduct reportable activities ("manu-
facture,'1'' "process," or "otherwise use" EPCRA section 313 chemicals
in excess of the activity thresholds) at buildings located on one site?
For example, the State of Washington owns land and leases buildings
to NASA and DOE. DOE is the lessee and sole operator of Building
A. NASA is the lessee of Building B; however, DOD and DOT also
conduct reportable activities in Building B. DOD's and DOT's
operations are not in support of NASA. Are NASA, DOE, DOD, and
DOT considered separate facilities'!
Yes. When multiple federal agencies "manufacture" "process" or "other-
wise use" EPCRA section 313 chemicals in excess of threshold amounts at
buildings at a single location, each federal agency is responsible for activi-
ties conducted by, or solely for, that federal agency. In the above example,
NASA, DOE, DOD, and DOT are engaged in separate activities at one
location. Each of these agencies would be considered an operator of a
separate facility, and separately would make threshold determinations and
release and other waste management calculations if appropriate.
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
SECTION 1
Primary Tenant,
Multiple
Establishments
GOCOs,
Contractors,
EO 13148
Requirements
GOCOs,
Contractors,
EO 13148
Requirements
GOCOs,
Contractors,
Reporting
Thresholds
23. If one federal agency is the primary tenant of a site, and it and
other federal agencies conduct operations on that site, how do those
agencies meet EPCRA section 313 reporting requirements for the site?
The primary tenant of the site is responsible for reporting under EPCRA
section 313 if the other agencies' activities on that site are in support of the
primary tenant. If the activities conducted by the other agencies on that site
are independent of, and do not support the primary tenant, then each agen-
cy files its own EPCRA section 313 reports.
E. Applicability to Government-Owned, Contractor Operated (GOCO)
Facilities.
24. A federal facility is fully operated by a contractor. This GOCO
facility conducts activities that do not fall within the SIC codes
covered under EPCRA section 313. Does Executive Order 13148
require this GOCO facility to comply with EPCRA section 313 just
because federal facilities must comply without regard to SIC code?
EO 13148 does not extend compliance under EPCRA or PPA to GOCOs if
they are not otherwise covered. The contractor that operates this GOCO,
therefore, is not required to comply with EPCRA if it does not meet the
SIC code or other threshold requirements under EPCRA section 313.
However, EO 13148 requires the federal facility, when making its threshold
determinations and release and other waste management calculations, to
include the activities of the GOCO. The GOCO would provide the federal
facility with the information necessary for the federal facility to meet its
reporting obligations under EPCRA section 313.
25. A federal facility is operated by the government but also includes
GOCO facilities within its boundaries. Does Executive Order 13148
require a federal facility to consider the activities of GOCOs that are
located at the federal facility?
Yes. To meet its reporting requirements under EPCRA section 313, a
federal facility must include the activities at these GOCOs when making its
threshold determinations and release and other waste management
calculations.
26. A contractor, which is subject to reporting under EPCRA section
313, is located at a federal facility. The GOCO manufactures 100,000
pounds of an EPCRA section 313 chemical and releases to the air 5,000
pounds. Of the 100,000 pounds the contractor manufactures, 80,000
pounds are for activities that support the operations of the federal
facility while 20,000 pounds are for private business purposes. Of the
5,000 pounds the contractor releases to air, 4,000 pounds result from
the activities that support the government operations while 1,000
pounds result from the private business activities. When reporting
under EPCRA section 313, does the federal agency consider only the
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SECTION 1
1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
GOCOs,
Contractor,
SIC Code
GOCOs,
Contractor,
Landlord/Real
Estate Interest,
Reporting
Thresholds
activities at the GOCO facility that support the government opera-
tions or all the activities at the GOCO facility?
The federal agency should consider all the activities at the GOCO facility.
The contractor is located at the federal facility to support the activities of
the federal agency. While some of the contractor's activities may be inde-
pendent of its operations to support the government, the location of the
GOCO facility at the federal facility requires the federal agency to consider
the GOCO facility's activities when making its threshold determinations
under EPCRA section 313.
27. What if the contractor at a GOCO facility conducts operations
that meet all of the EPCRA section 313 reporting criteria except for
the SIC code classification. Does that federal facility still have to
report?
Yes. The federal facility must report, not the contractor. EO 13148 makes
EPCRA section 313 applicable to federal facilities without regard to SIC
code. EO 13148 also requires each federal agency, when its facilities are
meeting their EPCRA section 313 reporting responsibilities, to include the
activities at the GOCO facilities when making threshold determinations and
release and other waste management calculations.
28. A GOCO facility produces electrical components under contract
to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). The GOCO contractor
conducts all of its activities on property owned by the U.S. Depart-
ment of Defense (DOD). Although the contractor leases DOD prop-
erty, it provides no goods or services to DOD. Must DOD or DOE
include the contractor's uses of EPCRA section 313 chemicals when
performing threshold determinations under EPCRA section 313?
The determination of which agency is responsible for meeting EPCRA
section 313 reporting requirements depends on the interest of those agen-
cies involved. According to 40 CFR 372.38(e), the owner of a covered
facility (DOD in this example) is not required to comply with EPCRA
section 313 requirements if its interest in the facility is limited to ownership
of the real estate upon which the facility is operated.
If the contractor is the lessee as stated in the question, then DOE does not
need to evaluate the contractor's activities because the activities are not
being performed at a facility owned or operated by DOE. If the contrac-
tor's operations are in a covered SIC code, and the contractor has 10 or
more full-time employees, the contractor will need to perform threshold
determinations and release and other waste management calculations if
applicable.
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
SECTION 1
Tribal Issues
Threshold
Determination,
Leadership Role,
EO 13148
Requirements
Threshold
Determination
SIC Codes,
Primary SIC
Code, Primary
Activity
F. Form R Requirements
29. To what entities does a federal agency's facility operating on tribal
lands report under EPCRA section 313?
A federal agency operating a facility on tribal lands for which the agency
must meet EPCRA section 313 requirements should submit its Form R
reports to the U.S. EPA and the Chief Executive Officer of the applicable
Indian tribe. If the tribe has entered into a cooperative agreement with a
state, then the facility must submit the report to the receiving entity desig-
nated in the cooperative agreement.
30. What federal facilities are subject to EPCRA section 313 reporting
under EO 13148?
According to Executive Order 13148, EPCRA section 313 applies to each
federal facility, both government-owned, government-operated and govern-
ment-owned, contractor-operated, in which the total number of work hours
meets or exceeds 20,000 in a year (roughly 10 or more full time employees)
and meets or exceeds the "manufacture,'" "process" or "otherwise use"
thresholds for any EPCRA section 313 chemical. However, federal facili-
ties that do not meet these minimum requirements also are encouraged to
submit EPCRA section 313 reports. As EO 13148 states in its preamble,
"the federal government should be a good neighbor to local communities by
becoming a leader in providing information to the public concerning toxic
and hazardous chemicals...at federal facilities."
31. Is a federal facility meeting the employee hours and "manufac-
ture" "process" or "otherwise use" thresholds required to report if it
had no releases of EPCRA section 313 chemicals during the calendar
year?
Yes. For federal facilities, the reporting requirements under section 313 are
based only on the number of employees and the quantity of an EPCRA
section 313 chemical that was manufactured, processed, or otherwise used
during the calendar year. The amount of chemical released or managed as
a waste does not affect the reporting requirements (except in the case of
exemptions for articles). The facility would report "zeros" or "NA" (not
applicable) in the appropriate fields of Part II, Sections 5 and 6 of the Form
R.
32. For Part I, section 4.5 of the Form R, how should federal depart-
ments and agencies determine the SIC code(s) for reporting activities
being performed at federal facilities?
Federal facilities should use SIC codes that most accurately characterize the
activities being performed at the facility. The Form R allows six different
SIC codes to be reported in Part I, section 4.5. For example, a Forest
Service facility (Department of Agriculture) includes forests and an airport
13
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SECTION 1
1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
Employee
Threshold
GOCOs,
Contractors,
Employee
Threshold,
Contractor
Employees
GOCOs,
Contractors,
Off-site
Employees
to service aircraft used for fighting fires. This facility can enter SIC code
0851 (forestry services) and 4581 (airports, flying fields, and airport termi-
nal services) into Part I, section 4.5 of the Form R because these SIC codes
best describe the activities being performed at the facility. The federal
facility, however, should indicate the primary SIC code (which SIC codes
most accurately addresses the primary activity at the federal facility) by
entering this SIC code in the first data field (Part I, section 4.5a). In this
example, the Forest Service facility may determine that its primary function
is forestry services, thus entering 0851 in Part I, section 4.5a. The facility
would enter SIC code 4581 in Part I, section 4.5b indicating that this
activity (airports, flying, and airport terminal services) also takes place at
thefacility"
G. Employee Threshold
33. How does a federal facility determine if it has met the 10 or more
full-time employee threshold under section 313?
A "full-time employee" for the purpose of section 313 reporting, is defined
as 2,000 hours per year. In other words, if the total number of hours
worked by all employees (i.e., federal and contractor) is 20,000 hours or
more, the federal facility meets the "full-time employee" threshold.
34. A federal facility has a GOCO facility on-site. There are two
federal employees and eight GOCO facility employees (the total hours
exceed 20,000 hours). Has the facility met the full-time employee
threshold for purposes of reporting under EPCRA section 313?
Yes. The facility must count the hours worked by the federal employees
and the GOCO facility employees toward the 20,000 hour threshold. The
employees of the GOCO facility are contract employees who are working
in support of the operations of the federal facility. All contractor employee
hours, with the exception of minor on-site intermittent service vendors such
as vending machine servicers, must be considered when a facility is making
its full-time employee determinations.
35. A federal agency's facility is operated by a contractor. There are
9 employees working at this GOCO facility. The federal agency has
employees who oversee the activities of the facility, but who are not
physically located at the facility. When making the full-time employee
determinations, must the facility consider the hours worked by these
off-site federal employees?
Yes. The hours worked by federal employees directly in support of the
activities of a facility must be counted towards the 20,000 hour employee
threshold, regardless of the location of the federal employees (i.e., at the
federal facility or off-site).
14
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
SECTION 1
Threshold
Determinations
Threshold
Determinations,
Multiple
Activities
Threshold
Determinations,
Import,
Manufacture
Imports, Foreign
Facilities
Mixtures,
Threshold
Determinations,
Multiple Years
H. Activity Threshold Determinations
36. The Postal Service is prohibited from opening any of the mail that
it handles. Will EPA assume that the Postal Service should have
known that an EPCRA section 313 chemical was present at the
facility? Is the Postal Service required to include in its threshold
determination those quantities of an EPCRA section 313 chemical at
its facilities when those chemicals are present only in the mail being
processed at the facilities'!
No. The Postal Service need not include in its threshold determinations the
quantities of EPCRA section 313 chemicals that are present in the mail
being handled at its facilities. The Postal Service's activities in handling
any packages containing EPCRA section 313 chemicals are not "manufac-
ture" "process" or "otherwise use"
37. An agency performs different activities at one location. For which
activities should the agency count quantities of any EPCRA section
313 chemical in making its section 313 threshold determinations?
All quantities of EPCRA section 313 chemicals "manufactured"
"processed" or "otherwise used' in all non-exempt activities at & facility
should be counted in threshold determinations.
38. If a federal facility manufactures 19,000 pounds of an EPCRA
section 313 chemical and imports another 7,000 pounds of that same
chemical during the reporting year, is the facility required to report
for this chemical?
Yes. For the reporting year, the federal facility would have exceeded the
manufacture threshold of 25,000 pounds ([19,000 manufacturing] + [7,000
importing] = 26,000) for this EPCRA section 313 chemical. Note that
importing is the equivalent of manufacturing, and therefore the two
"manufactured" quantities must be added for threshold determinations.
39. A DOD facility in the U.S. obtains an EPCRA section 313 chemical
from a DOD facility located overseas (i.e., outside of the customs
territory of the U.S.). Has the U.S.-based DOD facility "imported" the
EPCRA section 313 chemical?
Yes. Although the EPCRA section 313 chemicals was transferred between
facilities of the same federal agency, the U.S.-based DOD facility "impor-
ted' the chemicals for purposes of EPCRA section 313.
40. In 1993, a federal facility buys 10,000 pounds of a listed chemical
and uses this amount to create a mixture (for example a metal cleaning
bath). The mixture is used both in 1993 and 1994. How does the
facility make threshold determinations for each year?
15
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SECTION 1
1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
Warehouses,
Processing,
Threshold
Determinations
Remediation
Activities,
Threshold
Determinations,
Leadership Role
Remediation
Activities,
Threshold
Determinations
Since the facility is applying the 10,000 pounds of the EPCRA section 313
chemical to the mixture for a process-related activity in 1993, the facility
would count this amount toward its otherwise use threshold for the 1993
reporting year. For the 1994 reporting year, only amounts of the EPCRA
section 313 chemical added to the bath during that year would be counted
toward the section 313 "otherwise use" threshold determination.
41. Are on-site warehouses subject to the threshold determinations of
section 313?
Warehouse operations can require threshold determinations. Reporting
thresholds are based on "manufacture" "process" or "otherwise use" of
an EPCRA section 313 chemical at the facility. Repackaging (e.g., pouring
the contents of a 55 gallon drum into smaller containers) for distribution
into commerce (e.g., shipped off-site to another federal facility within the
same agency) at a warehouse is considered processing and the repackaged
quantities of the EPCRA section 313 chemicals must be counted in the
facility's "process" threshold determinations. Simply receiving, storing,
relabeling, distributing, or reshipping pre-packaged quantities from a ship-
ment of packages is not "manufacture, " "process, " or "otherwise use. "
42. A federal agency is remediating an EPCRA section 313 chemical
that was released a number of years earlier. Must the federal facility
include the EPCRA section 313 chemical being remediated in thresh-
old determinations, release calculations, and reporting?
For threshold determinations, the facility is not required under EPCRA
section 313 to consider remediation activities of an EPCRA section 313
chemical releases in previous years. However, the facility must consider
any releases and other waste management of the remediated EPCRA
section 313 chemical if the facility triggered a reporting threshold for the
chemical elsewhere at the facility. In addition, the facility should consider
the objective of EO 13148, which calls on the federal facilities to be leaders
in the provision of information to the public about the releases and other
waste management of EPCRA section 313 chemicals. To meet the spirit of
this goal, federal facilities are encouraged to consider remediation activities
when making their threshold calculations.
43. A federal facility uses an EPCRA section 313 chemical for de-icing
runways. Some of this chemical is obtained through the remediation
of soil and groundwater contaminated in previous years. When mak-
ing its threshold determinations for this chemical, should the facility
account for the amount of the recovered chemical that is used for
de-icing?
Yes. De-icing runways would be considered an "otherwise use" activity.
Thefacility, therefore, should count the amount of EPCRA section 313
chemical used in the de-icing toward its otherwise use threshold. This
would include any amount of the EPCRA section 313 chemical recovered
16
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
SECTION 1
Metals,
Threshold
Determinations,
Otherwise Use,
Processing
Recycling,
Contractors,
Threshold
Determinations
Fuels/Bulk
Terminal
Storage,
from the remediation of soil and groundwater from previous years, as well
as amounts obtained from purchases.
Any amount of the remediated toxic chemical that the facility does not use
for a reportable activity (e.g., deicing runways) would not have to be
counted towards the otherwise use threshold. However, all releases or
other waste management of that remediated toxic chemical would be sub-
ject to reporting under EPCRA section 313 if the facility met a reporting
threshold for that chemical elsewhere at the facility.
44. A federal facility melts down submarines and sells or further uses
the constituent metals. These constituent metals contain EPCRA
section 313 chemicals. Should the facility include the EPCRA section
313 chemicals in these metals in its threshold determinations?
Yes. A federal facility that melts down submarines and sells the constituent
metals that contain EPCRA section 313 chemicals is "processing" the
chemicals in those metals for further distribution in commerce. If the faci-
lity further uses the constituent metals, for example tools were made from
the metal for use on-site in production operations, it is "otherwise using"
the EPCRA section 313 chemicals. Therefore, the facility should consider
the amount of EPCRA section 313 chemicals when making threshold
determinations and release and other waste management calculations.
45. A private contractor conducts recycling operations involving
EPCRA section 313 chemicals on-site at a federal facility. The contra-
ctor conducts these operations under contract to the federal facility,
but the contractor owns and operates the equipment. Must a federal
facility consider operations like this when making threshold determi-
nations and release and other waste management calculations for
EPCRA section 313 chemicals, if the federal facility does not own
or operate the stationary items used in the recycling operations?
Yes. A federal facility, when making threshold determinations and release
and other waste management calculations for section 313 reporting purpo-
ses, should include the amount of EPCRA section 313 chemicals used in
the operations of contractors under its control, even if the federal facility
neither owns nor operates the equipment used in the contractor's opera-
tions. In the above example, the private contractor, under contract to the
federal facility, conducts recycling operations involving EPCRA section
313 chemicals on-site at a federal facility, and uses equipment that the
contractor owns and operates. The contractor is under the control of the
federal facility, and the facility should include the amount of EPCRA sec-
tion 313 chemicals used in the contractor's operations when making thresh-
old determinations and release and other waste management calculations.
46. A DOD facility has a petroleum bulk terminal for storing fuel that
contains EPCRA section 313 chemicals. The fuel is periodically trans-
ferred from the petroleum bulk terminal to other parts of the facility.
17
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SECTION 1
1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
Threshold
Determinations,
Otherwise Use,
Repackaging
Remediation
Activities,
Release,
Contaminated
Soil
Remediation
Activities,
Otherwise Use,
Contaminated
Soil
Although this transfer is "repackaging," the facility does not distribute
the fuel in commerce. Must the facility consider the amount of
EPCRA section 313 chemicals in the fuel towards its processing thresh-
old? What about the otherwise use threshold?
Quantities of EPCRA section 313 chemicals that are "repackaged" but not
distributed in commerce do not meet the definition of "processed."
However, if the fuel is used on-site in a non-exempt activity, the EPCRA
section 313 chemicals in the fuel must be considered in the facility's
"otherwise use" threshold determinations. If the facility exceeds the
"otherwise use" threshold for any EPCRA section 313 chemicals in the
fuel, then the facility must report any releases or other waste management
activities for the chemicals, such as any releases that occur during the
"repackaging" step.
/. Source Reduction and Recycling
47. A federal facility conducts remediation activities on soils contami-
nated in prior years. The soils contain EPCRA section 313 chemicals.
Is the facility required to report under EPCRA section 313 for these
remediated chemicals?
EPCRA section 313 chemicals undergoing remediation are not included in
threshold determinations because remediated chemicals are not manufac-
tured, processed, or otherwise used. However, if a covered facility ex-
ceeds an activity threshold for a listed chemical elsewhere at the facility,
any releases and other waste management activities of the listed EPCRA
section 313 chemicals undergoing remediation must be included in the
facility's release and other waste management calculations. In that event, a
release does not include material already in a landfill but does include any
material releases to the environment (including being placed in a landfill) or
transferred off-site due to the remediation activity. While federal facilities
are not required to make threshold determinations for remediated EPCRA
section 313 chemicals, they should consider the spirit of EO 13148 by
providing this information to the public.
48. A federal facility conducts remediation activities on soils contami-
nated in prior years. The facility is using an EPCRA section 313
chemical as part of the remediation action. Is the facility required to
count the amount of EPCRA section 313 chemical used for remedi-
ation activities when making threshold determinations?
Yes. The use of EPCRA section 313 chemicals to remediate wastes is an
otherwise use activity. The facility should include the EPCRA section 313
chemicals used when making its otherwise use threshold determinations
and release and other waste management calculations.
18
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
SECTION 1
External
Funding
Sources,
Threshold
Determinations
SIC Codes,
Contractors,
Cleaning
Activities,
Otherwise Use
Construction
Activities,
Threshold
Determinations,
Cleaning
Solvents
J. Other Issues
49. Many DOE facilities conduct activities that are fully or co-funded
by others, such as universities and other federal agencies. Does DOE
include those activities when making threshold determinations, and if
appropriate, release and other waste management calculations from
those activities?
Yes. The source of funding for DOE activities is irrelevant in determining
if a facility should report under EPCRA section 313. If DOE or its con-
tractors are conducting activities that involve the use of EPCRA section
313 chemicals, then those activities must be included in threshold determi-
nations, regardless of who funds the activities.
50. In addition to manufacturing activities operated by DOE person-
nel, a cleaning operation has been established at a DOE facility to
clean uniforms. The industrial cleaning operations are operated by a
contractor. Is DOE responsible for reporting on the use of EPCRA
section 313 chemicals for the cleaning activities as well as manufac-
turing'!
Yes. Even though the contractor is performing functions under a separate
Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) Code, DOE is responsible for
reporting on all of the covered activities involving EPCRA section 313
chemicals at the facility. In this case, the contractor's operations are in
support of the DOE facility's operations and thus process-related. The
EPCRA section 313 chemicals used at cleaning operation would be applied
toward the DOE facility's otherwise use threshold. The contractor,
however, would not be subject to EPCRA section 313 because these
operations (SIC code 7218) are not in a covered SIC code.
51. A waste treatment unit presently is under construction at a DOE
facility where no other activities have been conducted during the
reporting year. EPCRA section 313 chemicals are present in the
construction materials used to fabricate the structure (e.g., steel) and
used to aid in the construction (e.g., cleaning solvents). Is the use of
EPCRA section 313 chemicals during construction activities exempt
from reporting under EPCRA section 313?
Because the SIC code restriction under EPCRA section 313 has been
waived under Executive Order 13148, federal facilities are required to
consider all activities, including construction, when making threshold
determinations under EPCRA section 313. EPCRA section 313 chemicals
that are contained in materials used to fabricate process-related equipment,
for instance, should be considered toward the facility's threshold determina-
tions and release and other waste management calculations. EPCRA section
313 chemicals that are contained in materials used to fabricate non process-
related structures (e.g., steel, paints, cement) and which are used to con-
struct the site, however, are exempt as structural components and do not
19
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SECTION 1
1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
Otherwise Use,
Hospitals
Recycling of
Munitions,
Processing,
Storage
Fire Retardants,
Processing,
Distribution in
Commerce
need to be included in threshold determinations or release and other waste
management calculations.
52. Are EPCRA section 313 chemicals used (e.g., for x-ray
development) at base hospitals covered by EPCRA section 313?
Yes. Maintaining the health of personnel is critical to the operations of a
federal facility with a base hospital. The use of these chemicals are
process-related and would be counted toward the facility's otherwise use
threshold.
53. A U.S. Army facility receives old ammunition from off site for the
purpose of making new ammunition. Is the old ammunition consi-
dered "processed" since it is used for manufacturing new ammunition?
What if this new ammunition is placed into storage and is not sent to
another facility for years?
The use of EPCRA section 313 chemicals to manufacture ammunition is a
reportable activity, regardless of the source of those chemicals. The
quantity of EPCRA section 313 chemical should be counted toward the
Army facility's processing threshold. Process is defined as "the preparation
of a toxic chemical, after its manufacture, for distribution in commerce"
(40 CFR Section 372.3). EPA interprets the activity of processing to be
reportable when the EPCRA section 313 chemicals are initially prepared.
The facility, therefore would count the amount of EPCRA section 313
chemical toward the facility's processing threshold determinations and
release and other waste management calculations during the year that the
ammunition was made.
54. A BLM facility prepares fire retardants to fight fires, including
fires on state and private lands. The fire retardant, which contains an
EPCRA section 313 chemical, is loaded onto airplanes at an airport
located at the ELM facility. The airplanes travel to the state and
private lands, where they drop the fire retardant on fires. Does the
BLM facility need to consider this chemical toward a reporting
threshold?
The BLM facility should count the amount of EPCRA section 313 chemical
in the fire retardant toward its processing threshold. Processing means the
preparation of an EPCRA section 313 chemical, after its manufacture, for
distribution in commerce (40 CFR Section 372.3). "Distribution in
commerce" includes any distributive activity in which benefit is gained by
the transferer, even if there is no direct monetary gain. The BLM facility
also must consider any releases and other waste management of the
EPCRA section 313 chemical prior to the transfer.
20
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
SECTION 2
Exemptions,
Leadership Role
National
Security
Exemption,
EO 13148
Compliance
Requirements
National
Security
Exemption
National
Security
Exemption,
Tier II Report
Section 2. EXEMPTIONS
A. General
55. Can federal facilities claim the exemptions allowed under 40 CFR
372.38?
While EO 13148 allows federal agency facilities to claim the same
exemptions, stating in Section 3-304 that "[a]ll other existing statutory or
regulatory limitations or exemptions on the application of EPCRA section
313 shall apply to the reporting requirements set forth in section 3-304(a)
of this order," taking these exemptions often is counter to the basic tenet of
the Order. This is especially the case when the exempted activities at
federal facilities result in substantial releases and other waste management
activities of EPCRA section 313 chemicals. A primary goal of EO 13148,
is that federal facilities shall be leaders and responsible members of their
communities by informing the public and their workers of possible sources
of pollution resulting from facility operations.
B. National Security Exemption
56. May a federal agency that is concerned with national security be
exempted from complying with EO 13148?
No. A federal agency may not have all of its facilities exempted from the
requirements of EO 13148; only a "specified site or facility" may be
exempted. In the interest of national security, the head of a federal agency
may request a site-specific Presidential exemption by following the
procedures set forth in section 120(j)(l) of CERCLA. Such exemptions
must be renewed for each individual site or facility yearly, and Congress
must be notified.
57. How long does a national security exemption last?
A national security exemption may last up to one year.
58. A federal facility has determined that the identity and storage
location of 5 of 12 chemicals on the Tier II report required by EPCRA
section 312 would compromise national security pertaining to chem-
ical weapons. Submission of EPCRA section 313 Form R reports,
however, will not compromise national security. Should the facility
request a national security exemption for all of the EPCRA reporting
requirements?
No. The national security exemption provision in section 6-601 of EO
13148 permits the head of a federal agency to request from the President a
facility- or site-specific exemption from any or all requirements of EO
13148 when such an exemption is determined to be in the interest of
national security. EO 13148 further states that federal facilities should
21
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SECTION 2
1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
Material Safety
Data Sheets
(MSDSs), Trade
Secret, National
Security
Exemption
Chemical
Composition,
Physician
Requests,
National
Security
Exemption
comply with the Executive Order to the maximum extent practicable,
without compromising national security. For these reasons, the head of the
agency (e.g., the Secretary of Defense) may request a Presidential order
exempting the installation from EPCRA section 312 reporting requirements
pertaining to the five chemicals, but the facility would not have grounds for
exemption from the other portions of EPCRA.
59. Some federal facilities use the Hazardous Materials Information
System (HMIS) database of Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDSs).
Several MSDSs are marked "For Official Federal Government Use
Only," and the information on the MSDS so marked is unavailable to
the public. Should a federal facility using a product for which a
supplier has submitted an MSDS with "For Official Government Use
Only," mark on the Form R that the product's composition is a "trade
secret" under EPCRA or subject to a national security exemption?
A product containing a listed chemical for which a supplier submits an
MSDS marked "For Official Federal Government Use Only" is not
necessarily a "trade secret" under EPCRA or subject to a national security
exemption. The federal agency head must assess the facility-specific use of
the product and the listed chemical or chemicals in it against the criteria for
determining whether these exemptions are applicable.
Under EPCRA, a facility or supplier may claim only the identity of the
reportable chemical as a trade secret. If a facility claims either for itself
or its supplier that a chemical's identity is a trade secret, the facility must
submit two versions of the Form R and two versions of the substantiation
form prescribed in 40 CFR 350. An "unsanitized" set of forms should give
the actual name and concentration of the listed chemical. The "sanitized"
version should give only a generic identity of the listed chemical. If EPA
finds that the trade secret claim is valid, the Agency will make only the
"sanitized" set of forms available to the public.
Under EO section 6-601, the head of a federal agency may request a yearly
national security exemption for a use of a listed chemical at that facility by
following the procedures set out in CERCLA section 120(j)(l). This re-
quest must be specific to the facility, and may request relief from the
obligation to comply with any of the requirements of EO 13148. EO 13148
does not require a federal facility to submit classified or national security
information to EPA, to states, or to tribes.
60. Under the authority of EPCRA section 323, a physician requests
the exact chemical composition of a chemical used by a federal facility.
The exact composition of the chemical is considered national security
information. Is the federal facility required to provide the chemical
composition to the doctor?
22
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
SECTION 2
Aircraft
Refueling,
Motor Vehicle
Exemption,
Leadership Role
Aircraft
De-icing, Motor
Vehicle
Exemption,
Leadership Role
Motor Vehicle
Exemption,
Leadership Role
If the chemical composition of a particular chemical is considered national
security information, a federal facility does not have to divulge the informa-
tion, as long as the information has been exempted under Executive Order
13148, section 801. Under this national security exemption, the facility
would not have to provide the exact chemical composition to anyone who
does not have proper security clearance.
C. Motor Vehicle Exemption
61. A federal facility uses fuels that contain EPCRA section 313 chemi-
cals to refuel aircraft based at that facility. Would this refueling be
exempt from threshold determinations and release and other waste
management calculations?
The refueling of the aircraft in this situation would be exempt under the
motor vehicle maintenance exemption. If the aircraft is based at another
facility, however, the refueling would be considered a "processing" activity
(i.e., repackaging the toxic chemicals for distribution into commerce) and
would not be exempt. The motor vehicle maintenance exemption can be
claimed only for "otherwise use" activities. Regardless of where the air-
craft is based, EPA encourages federal facilities to consider the scale of the
activity and the quantity of EPCRA section 313 chemicals used and con-
sider taking the leadership option outlined in the Executive Order by not
taking the motor vehicle maintenance exemption.
62. Is the use of ethylene glycol to de-ice wings of aircraft operated by
a facility exempt from the requirements of EPCRA section 313 under
the "motor vehicle maintenance" exemption?
Yes. The use of ethylene glycol to de-ice wings of aircraft operated by this
federal facility is considered to be a form of motor vehicle maintenance.
Because of the "motor vehicle maintenance" exemption, the ethylene glycol
is exempt from the requirements of EPCRA section 313. EPA recom-
mends, however, that federal facilities consider the leadership option of
reporting EPCRA section 313 chemicals.
63. What activities related to motor vehicles are reportable under
EPCRA section 313?
The motor vehicle exemption is applicable only to the "otherwise use" of an
EPCRA section 313 chemical. This exemption includes EPCRA section
313 chemicals found in gasoline, diesel fuel, brake and transmission fluids,
oils and lubricants, antifreeze, batteries, cleaning solutions, and solvents in
paint used for touch up, as long as the products are used to maintain the
vehicle operated by the facility. The motor vehicle exemption does not
apply to the manufacturing or processing of EPCRA section 313 chemi-
cals. EPCRA section 313 chemicals manufactured during the combustion
of gasoline, for instance, is not an exempt activity. EPA encourages federal
23
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SECTION 2
1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
Aircraft
Refueling,
Motor Vehicle
Exemption,
Processing
Motor Vehicle
Exemption,
Refueling
Batteries,
Articles
Exemption, Lead
facilities to play a leadership role, as advocated by Executive Order 13148,
by not claiming the motor vehicle exemption.
64. An Air Force facility fuels aircraft based on-site as well as aircraft
based at other Air Force facilities. Can the facility claim the motor
vehicle exemption for this activity?
The Air Force facility can claim the motor vehicle exemption for the fueling
of aircraft based at that facility. This is an "otherwise use" activity. For
the aircraft based at other Air Force facilities, however, the facility cannot
claim the motor vehicle exemption. This is a "processing" activity, which is
not covered by the motor vehicle exemption.
65. A federal facility receives motor vehicles for maintenance activities
from other facilities that are part of the same federal agency. The
facility disassembles the engines of these motor vehicles, and in the
process removes fuels that contain EPCRA section 313 chemicals.
After repairs, the facility reassembles the engines and refuels them
with the previously removed fuel, as well as additional fuel. Can the
facility claim the motor vehicle maintenance exemption for the EPCRA
section 313 chemicals contained in this fuel?
No. The federal facility h&$ processed the EPCRA section 313 chemicals
in the fuel because these vehicles are not based at the facility and are going
back to other facilities. The motor vehicle maintenance exemption applies
only to the otherwise use of EPCRA section 313 chemicals. The federal
facility, therefore, should count the amount of the EPCRA section 313
chemicals in fuels towards the processing threshold when making threshold
determinations and release and other waste management activities for
EPCRA section 313 reporting.
D. Articles Exemption
66. A federal facility provides maintenance for vehicles based at other
federal facilities. Part of this activity includes maintenance of bat-
teries that contain lead. Is the lead in these batteries exempt from
threshold determinations and release and other waste management
calculations under the articles exemption?
Under 40 CFR 372.3, an "article" must be a manufactured item: (1) which
is formed to a specific shape or design during manufacture; (2) which has
end use functions dependent in whole or in part upon its shape or design;
and (3) which does not release a toxic chemical under normal conditions of
processing or otherwise use of the item at the facility or establishments. If
the batteries containing lead are completely sealed while present at the
facility, they would be considered articles, and thus would be exempt from
EPCRA section 313 reporting. If, however, lead is released from the
batteries into the environment, as would occur during maintenance of the
batteries, the release would negate the articles exemption. If the exemp-
24
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
SECTION 2
Articles
Exemption,
Metal Plates,
Fumes,
Grindings
Articles
Exemption,
Manufacturing
Article
De Minimis
Exemption
tion is negated, the amount of lead and any other EPCRA section 313
chemical in these non-article batteries would be applied toward the 25,000
pound processing threshold to determine if the facility must report.
67. A federal shipyard facility cuts portholes into metal plates separa-
ted by seams. The plates contain nickel, and cutting them releases
fumes. The facility then produces grindings when it further grinds the
metal porthole to its final shape. For the plates to retain "article"
status under EPCRA section 313, total releases to all media must be
less than 0.5 pounds/year. Does this cut-off value apply separately to
releases from each type of "processing" or "otherwise use," or to
aggregate releases from all "processing" or "otherwise use" of the same
type of item?
The 0.5 pounds/year release cut-off value applies to aggregate releases
from the same type of item being processed or otherwise used in any
manner at the facility. This value applies to the total aggregate releases of
the EPCRA section 313 chemical from both steps of the process. There-
fore, to reach the 0.5 pounds/year value, & facility should add any releases
from grinding to those from cutting.
68. Lead shielding was used to transport nuclear warheads. A federal
facility is melting and reforming the lead shields into containers for
radioactive waste storage. Would the lead from the shields be exempt
from EPCRA section 313 reporting under the articles exemption?
No. Melting and reforming the lead shields to form storage containers
would constitute manufacturing of an article, which negates the article
exemption for the lead shield. Because the lead is incorporated into the
radioactive waste storage containers, the lead is otherwise used, unless the
facility sends the containers off-site (including to another DOE facility), in
which case the lead is processed.
E. De Minimis
69. A federal facility "otherwise uses" toluene, an EPCRA section 313
chemical, in two ways. In one "otherwise use" toluene is in a product
below the de minimis level, and is therefore exempt from threshold
determinations and release reporting under EPCRA section 313. In
the second "otherwise use" toluene is in a product in an amount
greater than the de minimis level and is used in excess of the 10,000-
pound "otherwise used" threshold. Because the facility must prepare a
Form R for toluene, must the facility report all of the releases and
off-site transfers in the report, including those that qualified for the
"de minimis" exemption?
No. If a facility has multiple uses of a single EPCRA section 313 chemical,
and one of those uses meets the criteria for an exemption, then the quantity
of the EPCRA section 313 chemical that meets the criteria for the exemp-
25
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SECTION 2
1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
Leadership Role,
Laboratory
Exemption
Laboratory
Exemption,
Primary Activity
Laboratory
Exemption, Part
of a Facility
tion is exempt from threshold determinations and release and other waste
management reporting requirements. In the above example, the facility
must file a Form R for toluene and must report all releases and other waste
management of toluene that result from all non-exempt uses of the
chemical.
F. Laboratory Exemption
70. What are the conditions in which federal facilities can claim the
laboratory activities exemption?
Federal facilities, like non-federal facilities, can claim the laboratory activi-
ties exemption for activities in which "a toxic chemical is manufactured,
processed, or otherwise used in a laboratory at a covered facility under the
supervision of a technically qualified individual, as defined in Section
720.3(ee) of this title (40 CFR Section 372.38(d))." To claim the labora-
tory exemption, therefore, the activity must occur in a laboratory and must
be under the supervision of a "technically qualified individual." However, if
the federal facility determines that a significant quantity of the toxic chemi-
cal is being used in an exempt activity, the facility should consider whether
taking the exemption is consistent with the spirit of EO 13148.
71. A laboratory is the primary activity at a federal facility. Is the
entire federal facility exempt from reporting under EPCRA section
313?
No. The type of the laboratory activity and the conditions under which the
activity occurs determine whether the quantity of EPCRA section 313
chemical "manufactured" "processed, " or "otherwise used" qualifies for
the laboratory activities exemption. Agency managers should not assume
that quantities of EPCRA section 313 chemicals are automatically exempt
from section 313 reporting requirements because the facility has "labora-
tory" in its name. Non-exempt activities include support activities such as
the use of EPCRA section 313 chemicals used to clean laboratory glass-
ware and maintain laboratory equipment. EPCRA section 313 chemicals in
pilot plant scale operations, laboratories that produce specialty chemicals,
and activities conducted outside the laboratory (e.g., wastewater treatment,
photo processing) are not exempt.
72. A laboratory is part of a federal facility. Are the EPCRA section
313 chemicals associated with the laboratory activities exempt from
the threshold determinations and release and other waste management
calculations, even if the facility as a whole is not exempt from section
313 requirements?
If a laboratory is part of a larger facility, only those EPCRA section 313
chemicals used in covered laboratory activities can be considered for the
exemption. A facility must still determine if quantities of EPCRA section
26
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
SECTION 2
Laboratory
Exemption,
Quality Control
Laboratory
Exemption,
Training,
Munitions
Transfers
Between
Laboratories,
Laboratory
Exemption
Laboratory
Exemption,
Transfers
Between
Laboratories
313 chemicals used in other activities trigger any activity threshold (i.e.,
manufacture, process, or otherwise use).
73. A federal facility sends samples of manufactured products that
contain EPCRA section 313 chemicals manufactured on-site to an on-
site laboratory for quality control purposes. Are the quantities of the
chemicals contained in the samples exempt from the facility's EPCRA
section 313 threshold determinations as a result of the "laboratory
activities" exemption (assuming all other "laboratory activities"
exemption criteria are met)?
No. Federal facilities are required to include in their threshold determina-
tions any quantity of an EPCRA section 313 chemical that is manufactured,
processed, or otherwise used. The "laboratory activities" exemption (40
CFR 372.38(d)) only applies to the EPCRA section 313 chemicals used
within the laboratory, not to the on-site manufacture, process, or otherwise
use (and associated releases) of the EPCRA section 313 chemical prior to
the time the sample was sent to the laboratory.
74. A DOD facility conducts training exercises in which munitions are
used. Since the facility is using the munitions during the training
exercises, are the EPCRA section 313 chemicals that are manufactured
during the use of the munitions exempt under the laboratory activities
exemption?
No. Training is not an activity that falls under the laboratory activities
exemption.
75. An EPCRA section 313 chemical is used in an experiment in a
laboratory located at a federal facility. The chemical then is sent to a
laboratory at a second facility to continue the experiment. Both
facilities conduct the experiments in a manner that meets the labora-
tory activities exemption for the EPCRA section 313 chemical. Can the
EPCRA section 313 chemical be moved from one facility to another to
continue an experiment and remain exempt under the laboratory acti-
vities exemption for threshold determinations and release and other
waste management activities?
Yes. The laboratory activities exemption applies "[i]f a toxic chemical is
manufactured, processed, or used in a laboratory at a covered'facility...(40
CFR 372.38(d))." The fact that the EPCRA section 313 chemical is moved
or "processed' to another facility's laboratory for further testing does not
negate the exemption.
76. An EPCRA section 313 chemical is used in an experiment in a
laboratory located at a federal facility (in a manner consistent with the
laboratory activities exemption). The chemical then is sent to a second
facility for use as a solvent. Does the laboratory activities exemption
apply to this situation?
27
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SECTION 2
1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
Laboratory
Exemption,
Threshold
Determinations
Laboratory
Exemption,
Prototypes,
Product Testing
Contractors,
Laboratory
Exemption
No. Amounts of listed EPCRA section 313 chemicals that are manufac-
tured., processed., or otherwise used in conjunction with the preparation of
such "specialty chemicals" (EPCRA section 313 chemicals produced in a
laboratory setting that are distributed in commerce) cannot be claimed
under the laboratory exemption. The use during the experiment may be
exempt, but at the point that it is prepared for distribution to another
facility, then it is undergoing a processing activity. The facility must
include this amount in its processing threshold determinations and release
and other waste management calculations.
77. A research laboratory at a federal facility uses an EPCRA section
313 chemical in an experiment that is carried out under the supervi-
sion of a technically qualified individual. Additional quantities of the
same EPCRA section 313 chemical are also used at the federal facility
for non-laboratory activities. Which quantities of the EPCRA section
313 chemical must be included in threshold determinations and release
and other waste management calculations?
The federal facility may exclude the quantity of the EPCRA section 313
chemical used in the exempted laboratory activity from threshold determi-
nations and release and other waste management reporting. All other
quantities of the EPCRA section 313 chemical that are not included in the
"laboratory activities" exemption and are not otherwise exempt (e.g.,
routine janitorial and facility grounds maintenance) must be included in
threshold determinations and release and other waste management
calculations.
78. A federal facility tests specific components of a machinery line for
assembling tanks. The facility's functions include testing for durabi-
lity of the engines, hydraulic systems, power trains, electrical systems
and transmissions; building prototypes of products; and testing
qualitative analytical materials in a chemical laboratory. Because
these activities are test-, development-, and research-oriented, are the
EPCRA section 313 chemicals used in these activities eligible for the
laboratory activities exemption?
The answer to this question depends on where the facility is conducting the
machinery testing. Equipment and component testing are laboratory activi-
ties if conducted in a laboratory, and thus are subject to the laboratory acti-
vity exemption as long as 1) listed EPCRA section 313 chemicals are being
manufactured, processed, or otherwise used there; 2) the laboratory is
located at a covered facility; and 3) the equipment and component testing
is conducted under the supervision of a technically qualified individual.
79. A contractor conducts tests on land at a BLM facility to determine
if there are commercial mineral ores present. Does this testing qualify
under the "activities in laboratory" exemption?
28
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
SECTION 2
Laboratory
Exemption
Laboratory
Exemption,
"Laboratory " in
the Name
Housekeeping,
Laboratory
Exemption
Office Supplies,
Personal Use
Exemption
No. The "activities in laboratory" exemption applies only to activities that
occur in a laboratory.
80. Is a federal facility, which has "Laboratory" in its name, exempt
from EPCRA section 313 reporting because of the laboratory activities
exemption?
No. The laboratory activities exemption applies to the "manufacture"
"process" or "otherwise use" of an EPCRA section 313 chemical in a
laboratory under the supervision of a technically-qualified individual. It
does not apply to the facility as a whole.
81. A laboratory uses nitric acid throughout the laboratory for house-
keeping purposes (e.g., cleaning up experiments). Over the course of
the reporting year, more than 10,000 pounds of nitric acid is used. Is
this amount reportable?
Yes. The amount of nitric acid is reportable because the primary use of the
chemical is a support function within the laboratory, not in actual research
and development, quality assurance/quality control, or analytical activities
under the supervision of a technically qualified individual. Because the ni-
tric acid is used in a non-incorporative manner, it is classified as "otherwise
use"
82. A DOE facility produces a specialty chemical, which is a listed
EPCRA section 313 chemical, for use in on-site experiments. The
specialty chemical is not available on the market. Is the facility re-
quired to submit a Form R for this chemical?
If a facility produces a specialty chemical for use entirely at that facility in
an experiment under the supervision of a technically qualified individual and
is not further distributed, then it is exempt from reporting under EPCRA
section 313. If, however, the specialty chemical is used in a non-experi-
mental manufacture, processing, or otherwise use activity, or it is distribu-
ted outside of the DOE facility for further use, it must be counted toward
the facility's otherwise use threshold and release and other waste manage-
ment calculations.
G. Personal Use Exemption
83. Should a facility include quantities of EPCRA section 313 chemi-
cals present in office supplies and similar products when making
threshold determinations and release and other waste management
calculations under EPCRA section 313?
No. EPA does not require a covered federal facility to account for quanti-
ties of EPCRA section 313 chemicals in office supplies (e.g., correction
fluid, copier machine fluids, etc.) when the facility makes threshold deter-
minations and release and other waste management calculations. EPA
29
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SECTION 2
1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
Blueprint
Machines,
Personal Use
Exemption,
Printing Shop
Wastewater
Treatment,
Personal Use
Exemption
Personal Use
Exemption
interprets these items to be personal use items and the chemicals contained
in them are exempt from threshold determinations and release and other
waste management calculations under the "personal use" exemption.
84. A printing shop within a federal facility uses cylinders of ammonia
gas in blueprint machines. The shop uses a total of 12,000 pounds per
year in this operation and does not "manufacture", "process" or
"otherwise use" any other quantities of ammonia. Is the quantity of
ammonia used in the blueprint machines equivalent to an office supply
item and exempt from the reporting requirements of EPCRA section
313 because of the "personal use" exemption?
No. Blueprint machines are not considered typical office supply items, and,
therefore, the chemicals used in them do not meet the criteria for the "per-
sonal use" exemption under EPCRA section 313 (see 40 CFR Section
372.38(c)(3)). Because the federal facility uses 12,000 pounds per year of
ammonia, the facility exceeds the 10,000-pound "otherwise use" threshold
and must report for ammonia.
85. A military base treats waste that results from personnel based on-
site. To treat the wastewater, the DOD facility houses a wastewater
treatment facility that uses chlorine during the treatment. Can the
DOD facility claim the personal use exemption for the use of the
chlorine used during the wastewater treatment?
No. The personal use exemption applies to the "Personal use by employees
or other persons at the facility of foods, drugs, cosmetics, or other personal
items containing EPCRA section 313 chemicals., including supplies of such
products within the facility such as in a facility operated cafeteria, store, or
infirmary (40 CFR Section 372.38(3))." This exemption allows facilities to
disregard mostly small-scale products that are ancillary to the operations of
the facility. It cannot be claimed for products that are integral to opera-
tions. For a military base, housing personnel typically is integral to its oper-
ations. Treating the resultant wastewater also would be integral to its oper-
ations. The personal use exemption does not apply.
86. Are federal facilities eligible for the personal use exemption?
Federal facilities, like all facilities subject to EPCRA section 313, must
consider the use of the EPCRA section 313 chemicals and the operations of
the facility when assessing eligibility under the personal use exemption.
This exemption is limited to EPCRA section 313 chemicals used in non-
process-related activities. A facility for which providing services to the
public or housing people is integral to its operations (process-related)
cannot claim the personal use exemption for EPCRA section 313 chemicals
used to support those activities. EPCRA section 313 chemicals used in
personal items, such as "white-out," in the administrative offices of these
facilities are not process-related, and therefore, would be eligible for the
personal use exemption.
30
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
SECTION 2
Structural
Component
Exemption,
Creosote
Structural
Component
Exemption,
Existing
Structure
Painting,
Structural
Component
Exemption,
Stationary
Crane
H. Structural Component Exemption
87. A Navy facility purchases wood pilings treated with creosote-tar
to support piers used for docking ships. Gradually, the creosote, an
EPCRA section 313 chemical, is released from the pilings into the
water. For purposes of complying with EPCRA section 313, is the
creosote exempt from threshold determinations and release reporting
under the "structural component" exemption?
No. The structural use exemption applies only to non process-related
equipment. The piers at the navy facility are process-related equipment.
EPCRA section 313 chemicals used to maintain these piers, therefore, are
not exempt. The facility should consider the amount of creosote on the
wood pilings towards the facility's otherwise use threshold for the year in
which the facility received them. If the facility determines that it exceeds a
reporting threshold for creosote, then any releases of the creosote must be
included in the facility's release and other waste management calculations.
88. If a federal facility builds a new structure or modifies an existing
structure on-site, must the facility include EPCRA section 313 chemi-
cals that are part of the new structure (e.g., the copper in copper pipes
in an administrative building) when making threshold determinations
and release and other waste management calculations under EPCRA
section 313?
No. EPCRA section 313 chemicals that are incorporated into the structural
components of a federal facility (e.g. the copper in copper pipes) or that are
used to ensure or improve the structural integrity of a structure are exempt
from threshold determinations and release and other waste management
calculations because of the "structural component" exemption (40 CFR
372.38(c)(l)). If, however, these new structures or modified structures are
process-related equipment, then the structural component exemption would
not apply.
89. A federal facility operates stationary cranes at a port. When
painting the cranes, volatile solvents are released to the atmosphere.
Does the facility have to report these releases under EPCRA section
313, or is such an activity exempt under the "structural component"
exemption?
The use of paint on process-related equipment is not exempt under the
structural component exemption. Amounts of listed EPCRA section 313
chemicals used to paint process-related equipment, including amounts
released during the painting application, must be considered toward thresh-
old determinations and release and other waste management calculations.
31
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SECTION 2
1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
Prisons,
Cleaning
Materials,
Facility
Maintenance
Exemption
Administrative
Buildings,
Cleaning
Materials,
Facility
Maintenance
Exemption
Hospitals,
Cleaning
Materials,
Facility
Maintenance
Exemption
I. Routine Janitorial or Facility Grounds Maintenance Use Exemption
90. A U.S. government prison facility cleans the prison cells and other
areas used by prisoners using cleaning materials that contain EPCRA
section 313 chemicals. Are the chemicals used in these activities
exempt from threshold determinations and release and other waste
management calculations under the "routine janitorial or facility
grounds maintenance" exemption of EPCRA section 313?
No. The routine janitorial or facility grounds maintenance exemption can
be claimed only for those activities that are not integral to the operations of
the facility. Only activities that are not process-related are eligible for this
exemption. For a prison, housing people is a process-related activity.
Supporting this activity, such as the cleaning of the prison cells and other
areas used by the prisoners, also are process-related. The EPCRA section
313 chemicals used in the cleaning activities, therefore, are not eligible for
the routine janitorial or facility grounds maintenance exemption. The
facility should count amounts of EPCRA section 313 chemicals used in
these cleaning activities toward the facility's otherwise use threshold.
91. Administrative buildings at a military base are cleaned daily using
cleaning materials that contain EPCRA section 313 chemicals. Can
the facility claim the routine janitorial or facility grounds maintenance
exemption for EPCRA section 313 chemicals used in these activities?
The routine janitorial or facility grounds maintenance exemption is applica-
ble to non-process-related activities. Cleaning administrative offices is a
non-process-related activity. The EPCRA section 313 chemicals used to
clean the administrative offices at the federal facility are exempt from
threshold determinations and release and other waste management calcula-
tions under the routine janitorial or facility grounds maintenance
exemption.
92. Would EPCRA section 313 chemicals used to sterilize rooms and
equipment at a federal hospital be exempt from threshold determina-
tions and release and other waste management calculations under the
routine janitorial or facility grounds maintenance exemption?
A federal hospital that uses a product containing an EPCRA section 313
chemical for sterilizing rooms and equipment would not be eligible for the
routine janitorial or facility grounds maintenance exemption. Keeping
hospital rooms and equipment clean is integral to the operations of the
hospital and therefore is process-related. A facility cannot claim this
exemption for process-related activities. While the hospital cannot claim
the routine janitorial or facility grounds maintenance exemption for EPCRA
section 313 chemicals used in products to keep rooms and equipment
sterile, the hospital can claim the exemption for EPCRA section 313
chemicals used in products to clean administrative offices at the hospital.
32
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
SECTION 2
Waste Oil,
Roads, Facility
Maintenance
Exemption, Dust
Control
Compressed Air,
Intake Water
Exemption
Maximum
Amount
93. A BLM facility has unpaved roads that provide access to its land.
The BLM facility allows a company to apply waste oil containing an
EPCRA section 313 chemical on the unpaved roads to control dust.
Can the facility claim the facility grounds maintenance exemption for
this activity?
No. The facility grounds maintenance activity is intended to cover
janitorial and other custodial or plant grounds maintenance activities using
such substances as bathroom cleaners, or fertilizers and pesticides used to
maintain lawns (40 CFR Section 372.38(c)(2)). The exemption does not
cover activities that are central to the operations of a facility. In this
instance, the roads at the BLM facility are integral to the activities of the
facility - providing access to the BLM land. The facility would consider
the amount of EPCRA section 313 chemicals in the waste oil towards its
otherwise use threshold.
J. Water Intake/Compressed Air Use Exemption
94. Would an EPCRA section 313 chemical present in compressed air
be exempt under the "intake water and/or air" exemption under
EPCRA section 313? What if the same chemical is present in process
emissions?
The "intake water/air" exemption of EPCRA section 313 (40 CFR
372.38(c)(5)) exempts the use of EPCRA section 313 chemicals present in
air used either as compressed air or as a part of combustion. The quantity
of EPCRA section 313 chemical present in the compressed air drawn from
the environment would be exempt from threshold determinations. If that
same chemical is present in air emissions only because it was in the com-
pressed air fed to a piece of equipment or process, then it would also be
exempt from release and other waste management calculations under
EPCRA section 313.
K. Other Issues
95. If a quantity of an EPCRA section 313 chemical meets the criteria
for a reporting exemption, should it be included on the Form R report
Part II, section 4.1: Maximum Amount of the Toxic Chemical On-Site
at Any Time During The Calendar Year?
No. If a federal facility uses an EPCRA section 313 chemical in a manner
that meets the criteria for a reporting exemption, that amount of the
EPCRA section 313 chemical is exempt from threshold determinations and
release and other waste management calculations. If a Form R report is
required because of other, non-exempt uses, exempted quantities should
not be included in calculations for Part II, section 4.1.
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SECTION 2
1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
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34
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
SECTION 3
Toxic Chemicals
List
Toxic Chemicals
List
Persistent,
Bioaccumulative
and Toxic
Chemicals
Non-listed
Chemicals, 50%
Reduction Goal
Section 3. DETERMINING WHETHER OR NOT TO REPORT:
LISTED TOXIC CHEMICALS
96. Will chemicals be added to or subtracted from the EPCRA section
313 chemical substance list?
Yes. The EPCRA lists have evolved since the statute was passed in 1986.
As more information has become available on the hazards and toxicity of
chemicals, EPA has responded by identifying chemicals to be added to or
taken off the EPCRA lists; EPA expects to continue this activity. When
chemicals are added to or taken off the EPCRA lists, EPA always publishes
a notice in the Federal Register. The most recent instruction booklet for
completing the Form R contains the updated chemical list. To obtain
information on the latest additions or deletions from the list of EPCRA
section 313 chemicals contact the EPCRA Hotline at 1-800-424-9346.
97. How does a federal facility determine what EPCRA section 313
chemicals it has on-site?
There are many ways a federal facility can identify the EPCRA section 313
chemicals it has on-site. Here are some: (1) look for Material Safety Data
Sheets (MSDS); (2) look at acquisition and procurement records; (3) ex-
amine existing environmental permits; (4) review process engineering
records; (5) look at chemical composition sheets provided by suppliers; and
(6) utilize professional knowledge.
98. On October 29,1999, EPA published a final rule on Persistent,
Bioaccumulative and Toxic (PBT) chemicals. Does this rule affect
federal facilities?
Yes. Executive Order 13148 section 501(a) states that "Each agency shall
comply with the provisions set forth in section 313 of EPCRA, section
6607 of PPA, all implementing regulations, and future amendments to these
authorities, in light of applicable EPA guidance." This PBT rule includes
several actions to ensure public access to information about PBT chemicals,
including: setting criteria for persistence and bioaccumulation; establishing
lower reporting thresholds for PBT chemicals; and designating certain
chemicals as EPCRA section 313 PBTs.
99. Other than those chemicals on the EPCRA section 313 list, for
what chemicals do federal facilities have to report?
For purposes of EPCRA section 313, there is no requirement to report for
chemicals not on the EPCRA section 313 list of chemicals. Reporting on
any non-listed chemical is voluntary. A federal agency may decide to
require its facilities to report for other hazardous substances or pollutants.
35
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SECTION 3
1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
Non-listed
Chemicals
Form R Report,
Chemical
Identities, Non-
listed Chemicals
PCBs Removal
and Storage,
Threshold
Determination
Mixture,
Compound
100. Should a federal facility submit a Form R report for a non-listed
chemical other than one on the EPCRA section 313 list if it would like
the additional chemicals included in the agency's use reduction goal?
A federal facility may submit a Form R report for chemicals other than
those listed under EPCRA section 313, such as hazardous substances and
other pollutants targeted under its use reduction goal (section 503).
However, the Executive Order does not require the agency to file a Form R
for these non-listed chemicals.
101. If a federal facility voluntarily submits a Form R report for a
non-listed toxic chemical, what chemical identity should the facility
use in Part II, Section 1 of the Form R report?
When a federal facility reports on releases of a toxic pollutant that does not
appear on the EPCRA section 313 list of chemicals, the facility should use
either the specific Chemical Abstract Service (CAS) number and the chem-
ical name for that CAS number found in the 9th Collective Index; or the
CAS number and the most commonly used chemical name. The facility
should not use trade names.
102. PCBs are removed and stored while the transformer undergoes
routine maintenance, and then put back into the transformer. Should
the facility consider the amount of PCBs returned into the transformer
when making its threshold determinations?
The facility must consider any amount of PCBs added to a transformer
towards its otherwise use threshold for that chemical if the transformer is to
be used on-site or towards the processing threshold if the transformer is to
be sent off-site to another facility. The facility is not required to consider
the amount of PCBs that are removed then returned to a transformer
towards a reporting threshold. Any releases or other waste management of
the PCBs during this activity must be reported on the Form R if the facility
meets any reporting threshold for PCBs.
103. What is the difference between a mixture and a compound?
When a compound is formed, the identities of the reactant chemicals are
lost, but in a mixture, the individual components retain their own identity
and could be separated again. For example, polyethylene is a compound,
not a mixture (and is not subject to reporting under section 313). Commer-
cial xylene, however, is a mixture that contains different xylene isomers and
ethyl benzene (all listed chemicals).
36
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
SECTION 4
Fuel, Active
Shipping Papers
Threshold
Determinations
Imports,
Manufacturing,
Threshold
Determinations
Section4. COMPLETING THE FORM R: RELEASES AND
WASTE MANAGEMENT CALCULATIONS
A. General
104. Do federal facilities have to account for releases and other waste
management activities of EPCRA section 313 chemicals contained in
fuel that is under active shipping papers?
No. Except for the emergency notification requirements of section 304,
EPCRA does not apply to the transportation of EPCRA section 313
chemicals. This includes EPCRA section 313 chemicals stored incident to
transportation (EPCRA section 327).
105. How should a federal facility, which has not previously reported
under EPCRA section 313, begin efforts to make threshold determina-
tions and release and other waste management calculations for
activities at the facility?
Federal facilities should utilize the best readily available information needed
to make threshold determinations and release and other waste management
calculations. For example, a release through an air stack or to a receiving
stream may be estimated from the appropriate air and water permits. Permit
applications may also include the mathematical equations that were used to
calculate permitted release amounts. These equations potentially could be
modified and used to calculate releases for section 313 reporting purposes.
Reaction equations and engineering notes also may provide a good source
of information for release calculations and on-site waste management
activities. For transfers off-site for further waste management, annual or
biannual RCRA reports provide an excellent source of information. These
reports refer to specific hazardous waste manifests. From the manifests, it
may be possible to estimate the amounts of EPCRA section 313 chemicals
in the waste transferred off-site. Invoices and shipping receipts are
essential if a reportable EPCRA section 313 chemical that is not a RCRA
waste, is sent off-site for recycling or disposal. In addition, the EPA has
produced estimation guidance manuals for specific industries and for
specific chemicals. Information about how to obtain these guidance
manuals is available on the EPA website: http://www.epa.gov/opptintr/tri.
106. If a federal facility's supply system imports an EPCRA section
313 chemical in excess of a threshold amount, is the facility required to
report for releases and other waste management of that chemical under
section 313?
Yes. Under the authority of EPCRA section 313, EPA defines "manufac-
ture'" to mean produce, prepare, compound, or import (40 CFR 372.3). If
a federal facility causes more than 25,000 pounds of an EPCRA section 313
chemical to be imported, it has exceeded the "manufacture" threshold and
must make release and other waste management calculations for that
37
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SECTION 4
1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
Coal, Storage,
Release to Land,
Stockpiles
Barges
Incineration of
Liquid Wastes,
Air Emissions,
Waste Treatment
EPCRA section 313 chemical. A facility would "cause" an EPCRA section
313 chemical io be imported by specifically requesting a product (contain-
ing the EPCRA section 313 chemical) from a foreign source or requesting
a product known to be only available from a foreign source.
B. Releases
107. A federal facility that produces electricity by burning coal stores
the coal in an on-site stockpile that is exposed to the outside atmos-
phere. The facility meets one of the activity thresholds for filing a
Form R report for benzene, an EPCRA section 313 chemical. Because
the stockpiled coal contains benzene and is exposed to the outside
atmosphere, must all the benzene in the coal be reported on the Form
R report as an on-site release to land?
No. A federal facility does not have to report EPCRA section 313 chemi-
cals contained in an on-site stockpile as an on-site release to land if the
stored material is intended for processing or use. However, any quantity of
EPCRA section 313 chemical that escapes to the air or remains in the soil
from the stockpiled material (e.g., evaporative losses to air, material
leached to the ground, etc.) must be reported as an on-site release to the
environment if the facility meets a reporting threshold for the EPCRA
section 313 chemical elsewhere at the facility. Once a federal facility
meets the criteria for filing a Form R report for an EPCRA section 313
chemical (such as benzene), all non-exempt releases and other waste
management activities of that chemical at the facility are to be included in
the Form R report. (Note: Benzene typically is present in coal below the
de minimis level and if this is the case, the quantity of benzene in coal is
exempt from threshold determinations and release and other waste
management calculations under EPCRA section 313.)
108. A non-motorized barge is brought into dry-dock for maintenance
at a federal facility. While in dry-dock, there are releases of a toxic
chemical from the barge. Would the releases of this toxic chemical be
reportable?
Yes. Releases of toxic chemicals from the barge while in dry-dock on
facility grounds must be included in release and other waste management
calculations if reporting thresholds for those toxic chemicals are exceeded
by the facility.
109. A federal facility has determined that it meets the reporting
threshold for an EPCRA section 313 chemical. The chemical, which
ends up in the facility's liquid waste stream, is incinerated. The
incineration is 99.9 percent efficient in destroying the EPCRA section
313 chemical. The remaining 0.1 percent of the chemical is released to
the air as a gaseous waste stream. There is no further treatment of the
gaseous waste stream. Would the federal facility need to report this
gaseous waste stream in the waste treatment section of the Form R
report for the EPCRA section 313 chemicall
38
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
SECTION 4
Monitoring,
Emissions Data
Loading of
Vehicles, Active
Shipping Papers
TSDFs,
Spent Munitions
No. The federal facility does not need to report the gaseous waste stream in
Part II, section 7A of the Form R report because no treatment is applied to
the gaseous waste stream. However, the amount of the EPCRA section
313 chemical in the gaseous waste stream would be reported as a release
to air and in Part II, section 5.2, Stack or Point Air Emissions.
110. Section 313(g)(2) of EPCRA states that the owner or operator of
a facility may use readily available data for reporting releases of toxic
chemicals. If a federal facility has monitoring or emissions data for an
EPCRA section 313 chemical that they do not believe are representa-
tive, should they still use that data to complete the release calculations
on the Form R report?
No. If a federal facility has monitoring or emissions data that are not
considered "representative," the data need not be used. In such cases, a
more accurate estimate based on mass balance calculations, published
emission factors, engineering calculations, or best engineering judgement
should be used. In such instances, a federal facility should document why
the available monitoring data were believed to be unrepresentative.
111. Tank trucks, barges, and rail cars enter a federal facility. During
loading, EPCRA section 313 chemicals are released. Are these releases
subject to reporting requirements under EPCRA section 313?
Yes. Under EPCRA section 313, a federal facility that meets a reporting
threshold for a toxic chemical is responsible for reporting releases of that
chemical that occur during loading or unloading of a transportation vehicle
while the vehicle is on property owned or operated by the federal facility.
The only releases that are exempt from these requirements are releases of
an EPCRA section 313 chemical from a transportation vehicle that occur
while the vehicle is still under "active shipping papers."
112. A. facility places spent munitions on-site with no immediate intent
to transfer the waste off-site or dispose of it on-site. The facility has a
RCRA Part B permit to operate as a Treatment, Storage, and Disposal
Facility (TSDF). Does this facility have to report this placement of
spent munitions as a release to land on-site on the Form R?
Yes. Spent munitions containing EPCRA section 313 chemicals that are
placed on-site, with no immediate intent to transfer the waste off-site, must
be reported as a release to land if the facility meets a reporting threshold
for that chemical elsewhere at the facility. An immediate intent to transfer
the wastes off-site may be demonstrated if (1) spent munitions containing
the EPCRA section 313 chemicals have been routinely sent off-site during
the reporting year; or (2) the facility has a contract in place to transfer
spent munitions containing the EPCRA section 313 chemicals off-site
before the end of the reporting year, and actually transfers the spent
munitions before the year's report was submitted or by July 1, whichever
comes first.
39
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SECTION 4
1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
Sludges,
Recycling,
Metals Cooling
Pont, Waste
Management
Activities
TSDFs, Waste
Management
Activities, Final
Disposition
FOTW,
Wastewater
Treatment
C. Transfers to Off-Site Locations
113. During the reporting year, a federal facility discharges waste
containing listed EPCRA section 313 metals to an on-site cooling
pond. The metals accumulate and settle, and the water is then
drained from the cooling pond, leaving a heavy metal sludge. The
sludge is then dredged and sent off-site to a recycler. How should the
EPCRA section 313 chemicals left in the pond, after the sludge has
been removed for recycling, be reported?
Listed EPCRA section 313 chemicals remaining in the pond after the
sludge has been removed should be reported as "released to land." Listed
EPCRA section 313 chemicals left in the pond water, which have been
drained off, should be reported according to their disposition: either dis-
charged to a stream (back into the cooling pond), discharged to a POTW,
transferred to other off-site locations, treated on-site, or recycled on-site.
114. Many federal facilities send their hazardous waste containing
EPCRA section 313 chemicals to off-site TSDFs. If a federal facility is
reporting these toxic chemicals on a Form R report, what is the
facility's obligation to ascertain the final, known disposition of the
EPCRA section 313 chemical for purposes of choosing a waste manage-
ment code in Part II, section 6.2.C.?
The federal facility is required to use the best data available at the facility to
identify the final, known disposition of an EPCRA section 313 chemical
that it is reporting on a Form R report for the purpose of entering a waste
management code in Part II, section 6.2.C of the Form R. While obtaining
additional information from the off-site location concerning the fate of the
particular EPCRA section 313 chemical is not required, it is certainly an
option for facilities who lack a complete understanding of the final disposi-
tion of an EPCRA section 313 chemical in a waste sent off-site.
115. A federal facility reporting under EPCRA section 313 discharges
wastewater containing EPCRA section 313 chemicals to a Federally
Owned Treatment Works (FOTW) facility. The FOTW is located on
a separate site that is not contiguous or adjacent to the reporting
facility. For purposes of Form R reporting, should discharges to
FOTWs be considered equivalent to discharges to Publicly Owned
Treatment Works and reported in Part II, Section 6.1, or should these
releases be reported in Part II, Section 6.2 as "wastewater treatment
(excluding POTW)" (i.e., code M61)?
If a federal facility reporting under EPCRA section 313 discharges waste-
water containing EPCRA section 313 chemicals to a FOTW, the facility
should report the discharge to the FOTW as a discharge to a POTW (Part
II, section 6.1 of Form R), because the operations performed by the FOTW
are essentially equivalent to those performed by a POTW
40
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
SECTION 4
Waste Broker,
Waste
Management
Activities
Munitions,
Otherwise Use,
Waste
Management
Activities
116. A federal facility, which exceeds a reporting threshold for an
EPCRA section 313 chemical, sends waste containing the EPCRA
section 313 chemical off-site for disposal. Besides its own waste, the
federal facility acts as a waste broker for the same EPCRA section 313
chemical for another federal facility within the same parent federal
agency. How should the federal facility report for this chemical?
The federal facility should report for the amount of the EPCRA section 313
chemical that it sent off-site for disposal, as well as the amount received
from the other federal facility. The total amount should be entered in Part
II, section 6.2. A, under "transfers to other off-site locations." The method
of disposal by the off-site location should be entered in Part II, section
6.2.C.
117. A DOD facility receives old munitions, which contain EPCRA
section 313 chemicals, from other DOD facilities for destruction
(treatment). The method of destruction (treatment) is open burning.
How should the DOD facility report for this activity?
The receiving DOD facility would have to count the amount of EPCRA
section 313 chemicals in the munitions toward its otherwise use threshold.
The definition of "otherwise use" includes the disposal, stabilization and
treatment of an EPCRA section 313 chemical received from off-site for the
purposes of further waste management. For those EPCRA section 313
chemicals meeting the otherwise use threshold, and which are not
destroyed during the treatment process, the facility would have to make
release and other waste management calculations. As an example, metals
are not destroyed during treatment activities; and the facility would have to
make release and other waste management calculations for the metals,
provided they meet the reporting threshold.
Starting January 1, 1998, facilities must count the amount of an EPCRA
section 313 chemical manufactured during the destruction of waste
received from off-site toward its 10,000 pound otherwise use threshold if
the facility subsequently stabilizes or disposes the EPCRA section 313
chemical on-site. The receiving DOD facility should determine the amount
of EPCRA section 313 chemicals "manufactured' as a result of the de-
struction process. In addition, the facility must count the amount of a
manufactured EPCRA section 313 chemical toward the facility's 25,000
pound manufacturing threshold for that chemical.
41
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SECTION 4
1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
Remediation
Activities,
Part II Section
Remediation
Activities, Part
II Section 8.8
Combustion,
Energy Recovery
D. Source Reduction and Recycling
118. A federal facility is involved in the remediation of benzene. The
facility also uses benzene as a manufacturing aid in the blending of fuel
additives. The amount of benzene used in the fuel blending operations
exceeds the 25,000 pound processing threshold under EPCRA section
313 and the facility has more than 10 FTEs. If benzene is released to
the air during remediation, does that release get reported in Part II,
section 8.1 of the Form R?
No. All releases and other waste management of an EPCRA section 313
chemical resulting from remedial actions should be reported under Part II,
section 8.8 (as well as in sections 5 and 6) of the Form R and are not to be
reported under Part II, sections 8.1 through 8.7 of the Form R.
119. A federal facility is submitting a Form R report for an EPCRA
section 313 chemical. During a remediation project, the same chem-
ical is transferred from one medium to another. For example, soil
excavation during groundwater remediation causes an EPCRA section
313 chemical to be released to the air. How should the release be
reported on the Form R?
If a federal facility exceeds reporting thresholds for the chemical in other
non-exempt activities at the facility then the release of that EPCRA section
313 chemical from one medium to another due to remediation activities
must be reported on the Form R, unlike EPCRA section 313 chemicals that
transfer to another medium as a result of natural migration. Releases of
EPCRA section 313 chemicals that occur as a result remediation activities
during the reporting year are reported in section 8.8 and the appropriate
sections of Part II, sections 5 and 6 of the Form R report.
120. A federal facility voluntarily reports releases of EPCRA section
313 chemicals contained in motor vehicle fuel. The motor vehicles are
operated by the facility and they report the combustion of the EPCRA
section 313 chemicals that occurs in the vehicle engine as '"''otherwise
used" and subject to the 10,000 pound threshold. Would the combus-
tion process that occurs in the vehicle engine be considered a report-
able energy recovery method (i.e., Part II, sections 7B and 8.2) for the
Form R reporting?
No. The quantity of EPCRA section 313 chemical reported in Part II,
sections 7B and 8.2 of the Form R as used for energy recovery include
EPCRA section 313 chemicals present in wastes, not in raw materials.
Therefore, the combustion of EPCRA section 313 chemicals contained in
fuel that occurs in a motor vehicle engine is not considered a reportable
energy recovery method on the Form R report.
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
SECTION 4
Multi-
Establishment
Reporting,
Threshold
Determinations
Multi-
Establishment
Reporting,
Waste
Management
Activities
Storm Water,
Legacy Wastes
E. Other Issues
121. A DOE facility has three establishments ("distinct and separate
economic activities [e.g., separate SIC codes] [that] are performed at a
single location"). The three establishments are considered one facility
for threshold determinations, but are submitting separate Form R
reports to report their releases and other waste management activities.
A waste containing tetrachloroethylene (TCE) is produced at Estab-
lishment A and transferred to Establishment B for waste treatment in
a TSCA incinerator. Establishment A has only air releases of TCE.
Except for the amount received from Establishment A, Establishment
B does not use TCE. How should the tetrachloroethylene be reported
if two Form Rs are submitted?
Establishment A should report all releases and other waste management of
the TCE up to the point at which the waste TCE was transferred to Estab-
lishment B. It would not, however, report the transfer of the TCE to
Establishment B. Since there are only air releases of TCE from Establish-
ment A, this establishment would report the amount of air releases in Part
II, Section 5 and 8.1 of the Form R. Establishment B should report all
releases and other waste management (including incineration) once the
TCE is received from Establishment A. Establishment B would report any
releases or other waste management in Part II, Sections 5, 6 and 8 of the
Form R. The on-site incineration would be reported in Part II, Section 8.6
of Establishment B's Form R.
122. Each establishment of a mn\t\-establishment federal facility files
its own Form R for an EPCRA section 313 chemical. The waste that
this multi-operation site ships off-site for further waste management is
inventoried on an entire facility basis. To report this waste, does each
establishment estimate their percentage of the total waste or can one
operation report the entire waste?
If individual establishments report separately for one chemical, they must
report separately all releases of that chemical. Therefore, in the case cited
above, one establishment cannot report the amount transferred off-site for
further waste management from the entire facility. Each operation would
have to report their percentage of the amount transferred off-site.
123. Because you are required to report the amount of a listed
EPCRA section 313 chemical in storm water, how do you know if the
chemical is associated with current releases from that year's
production or is from legacy waste?
There is no definite way to determine if a chemical in storm water is assoc-
iated with that year's production or is from legacy wastes. A facility should
use its best available information, based on available monitoring data and
knowledge of conditions at the facility, to estimate the amount of a listed
EPCRA section 313 chemical in storm water resulting from that year's
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SECTION 4
1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
Firing Ranges,
Fugitive
Releases,
Lead Bullets
Activity Ratio
production. In the absence of documentation, listed EPCRA section 313
chemicals found in storm water should be reported as current releases.
124. DOE sites have firing ranges for their security personnel. The
bullets used by the security personnel are made out of lead. During
firing, they release trace amounts of lead, and often disintegrate upon
impact with the target. How would lead released from the use of
bullets in a firing range be reported on the Form R?
Releases from the firing of the bullets would be reported as fugitive re-
leases to air - Part II, Section 5.1 of Form R. Lead in unrecovered bullets
would be reported as releases to land: other disposal -- Part II, Section
5.5.4 of Form R. Lead in bullets that are recovered and sent off-site for
disposal or recycling would be reported in the appropriate sections of the
Form R. According to the EPA document, Compilation of Air Emission
Factors (AP.42), approximately 1.2 pounds of lead is released as fugitive
air emission for every 2,000 pounds of lead bullets fired. (See Chapter 11,
Section 3: Explosives Detonation).
125. A reportable chemical is used to clean machinery once a month,
every month. Activity involving this chemical would not appear to
change from year to year if this is the only activity for which the
chemical is used. Is it possible to have an activity ratio of 1?
Yes. It is possible that the activity ratio for a chemical equal 1 if the fre-
quency of the activity for which it is used does not change. The activity
index is the measure of an operation at a facility, a production index is the
measure of the plant's actual productivity in relation to chemical usage.
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
SECTION 5
GOCOs,
Multiple
Reports,
TRIS Database,
Contractors
Facility Name
Section 5. FORM A AND FORM R SUBMISSIONS
126. Executive Order 13148 does not alter a GOCO facility's respon-
sibility to report under EPCRA section 313. As a result, EPA may
receive two Form R reports that cover the same releases for an EPCRA
section 313 chemical — one from the federal agency and the other from
the government contractor operating at the federal facility. How does
EPA avoid double-counting these releases when the data are entered
into the TRIS data base?
EPA enters into the TRIS database only the EPCRA section 313 reports
submitted by the federal agency's facility. EPCRA section 313 reports
submitted by a contractor at a federal facility are superseded by EPCRA
section 313 reports from the federal agency' $ facility. This ensures that
there is no double counting of the TRI data. While EPA does not enter the
contractor's EPCRA section 313 reports into the TRIS database, contrac-
tors must, by law, continue to comply with EPCRA section 313 if it meets
the reporting requirements.
To help ensure that federal facility reports and corresponding GOCO
reports are properly identified, EPA is requesting that the federal agency
and contractor staff follow certain procedures to distinguish the federal
facility's Form R reports from the contractor's Form R reports. In particu-
lar, federal facilities and contractors must complete Part I, section 4.1 of
the Form R in a specific fashion. For example, part of a Department of
Energy facility in Anytown, North Dakota, is operated by a contractor that
has a legal obligation to report under EPCRA section 313. In section 4.1,
Facility or Establishment Name, DOE would enter: U.S. DOE Anytown
Plant. In filling out a separate Form R, the contractor would enter: U.S.
DOE Anytown Plant - contractor name, in section 4.1.
In addition, a federal facility will be asked to submit copies of the contrac-
tor's Form R reports along with the Agency's Form R reports. If a federal
facility is unable to obtain the contractor's Form R reports, the facility
must, at a minimum, provide the following information in a cover letter:
• Contractor name;
• Contractor's technical contact; and
• Contractor's TRI facility name and address.
127. How should a federal facility report its facility name on the Form
R report?
A federal facility should report its facility name on page one of the Form R
reports (Section 4.1). It is very important that the federal agency name
precede the specific plant or site name, as shown in the following example:
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SECTION 5
1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
Acronyms,
Federal Agency
Name
Address,
Physical
Location
Accidental
Releases
U.S. DOE Savannah River Site
A GOCO contractor at a federal facility should report its names as shown
in the following example:
U.S. DOE Savannah River Site - Westinghouse Operations
128. To complete Part I, section 4.1 of the Form R, a federal facility
should enter "U.S." and the federal agency acronym. (For example,
the Department of Energy's Hanford site would be identified as "U.S.
DOE Hanford.") How do federal agencies with identical acronyms,
like the Departments of Treasury and Transportation, identify them-
selves on the Form R ?
To complete the site name in Part I, section 4.1 of the Form R, each federal
agency should use an acronym or other identifier that is unique to that
agency. For example, because the Department of Transportation is
commonly called "DOT" and the Department of the Treasury is commonly
called the "Treasury," the Department of Transportation could use "U.S.
DOT (site name)," and the Department of the Treasury could use "U.S.
Treasury (site name)," in Part I, section 4.1 of the Form R. Note that all
reporting facilities within a federal agency must use the same agency
identifier.
129. Within military installations, all mail is delivered to and distribu-
ted within these installations by specialized mail codes, zip codes, or
both. If a facility has no street address, how should the federal/aci'/iYy
complete the street address data element within Part I, section 4.1?
The federal facility should report whatever identifier is used to identify the
physical location as the facility address (e.g., 3 Miles south of 1-30 and I-
95). If the facility receives no mail at this location, the facility should
report the mailing address information in the space provided in Part I,
section 4.1.
130. A federal facility exceeds the reporting threshold for an EPCRA
section 313 chemical. How are accidental releases from filling tanks
with this chemical reportable in Section 8 of the Form R report?
If the accidental release of the EPCRA section 313 chemical at a federal
facility is a one-time event, then it should be reported in section 8.8 of the
Form R report. If the release is routine or frequent, it should be reported
in section 8.1 of the Form R. For example, spills that occur as a routine
part of production operations and could be reduced or eliminated by
improved handling, loading, or unloading procedures are included in the
quantities reported in section 8.1 through 8.7 of the Form R report, as
appropriate. A total loss of containment resulting from a tank rupture
caused by a tornado would be included in the quantity reported in section
46
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
SECTION 5
Certification
Statement
Multi-
Establishment
Reporting,
Facility
Latitude and
Longitude
131. Who should sign the Form R for the federal facility?
The senior management officer responsible for the operation of the federal
facility should sign the certification statement on Form R.
132. A DOE facility is divided into three distinct operations that are
administratively managed and operated separately. Can the DOE
facility be divided into multiple sites for the purpose of TRI reporting?
No. While the DOE facility contains three operations that are administra-
tively managed separately and are not located in close proximity to each
other, they are considered one facility under EPCRA because the opera-
tions are located on contiguous and adjacent properties owned by DOE.
These operations, if they are "distinct and separate economic activities
[e.g., separate SIC codes][that] are performed at a single location" are
establishments under EPCRA section 313. Each establishment may file
separate Form R reports as long as the threshold determinations are made
based on the entire facility. If separate Form R reports are filed, the total
releases and further waste management activities on these Form R reports
must equal the aggregate for the entire facility. For the multi-establish-
ment facilities., DOE must ensure that all EPCRA section 313 chemicals
are covered and avoid multiple reporting on chemicals involved in intra-site
transfers. For example, tf Establishment A transferred an EPCRA section
313 chemical to Establishment B for on-site disposal, only Establishment
B would report on the disposal of the EPCRA section 313 chemical.
Establishment A would not report the on-site transfer of that EPCRA sec-
tion 313 chemical to Establishment B.
133. When a large federal facility is determining its latitude and long-
itude coordinates, should it use the center of the entire facility or the
location of the majority of the facility's operations and activities?
The facility should report the latitude and longitude for a location central to
the operations for which you are reporting. For a \argefacility, with
several major points of activity, the facility should chose a location equi-
distant from all of the major activity points to determine the latitude and
longitude. Appendix E of U.S. EPA's Toxic Chemical Release Inven-tory
Reporting Form R and Instructions: Revised 1998 Version provides speci-
fic guidance on determining the latitude and longitude coordinates of a site.
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
SECTION 6
Supplier
Identification,
SIC Codes
Section 6. SUPPLIER NOTIFICATION
134. Commercial suppliers are required to provide supplier
notification to customers in covered SIC codes according to 40 CFR
372.45. What should federal facilities whose operations fall outside of
covered SIC codes do to ensure that toxic chemicals listed under
EPCRA section 313 are identified by their suppliers?
Supplier notification is required of commercial suppliers who supply
customers whose primary SIC code are covered under the TRI program. If
a federal facility's primary SIC code is not among the covered SIC codes,
there currently is no regulatory mechanism to ensure that this information is
received by the purchasing facility. One mechanism for ensuring that
suppliers identify EPCRA section 313 chemicals present in mixtures and
trade name products and provide concentration information is for the
federal facilities to request this type of information from their suppliers,
revise existing contracts with suppliers to require this information, or
ensure this information is required to be provided in any new contracts with
suppliers.
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers APPENDIX A
APPENDIX A. GLOSSARY
Article - the term in 40 CFR Section 372.3, is defined as a manufactured item: (1) which is
formed to a specific shape or design during manufacture; (2) which has end use functions
dependent in whole or in part upon shape or design; and (3) which does not release an EPCRA
section 313 chemical under normal conditions of processing or use of that item at the facility or
establishments.
Covered Facility - a facility, as defined in 40 CFR Section 372.3, that has 10 or more full-time
employees, is in a covered SIC code (see below), and meets the activity threshold for
manufacturing, processing, or otherwise using an EPCRA section 313 chemical (see below).
Covered SIC Code - prior to January 1, 1998, means SIC codes 20 through 39 (manufacturing
facilities). Beginning January 1, 1998, a covered SIC code means SIC codes in major group
codes 10 (except 1011, 1081, and 1094), 12 (except 1241), or 20-39; industry codes 4911, 4931,
or 4939 (limited to facilities that combust coal and/or oil for the purpose of generating power for
distribution in commerce); or 4953 (limited to facilities regulated under the Resource
Conservation and Recovery Act, subtitle C, 42 U.S.C. Section 6921 et seq.) or 5169, or 5171, or
7389 (limited to facilities primarily engaged in solvent recovery services on a contract or fee
basis).
Customs Territory - the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico (40 CFR Section
372.3).
Disposal - any underground injection, placement in landfills/surface impoundments, land
treatment, or other intentional land disposal (40 CFR Section 372.3).
Environment - includes water, air, and land and the interrelationship which exists among and
between water, air and land and all living things (EPCRA Section 329(2)).
EPCRA section 313 chemical - (see Toxic chemical below) - a chemical or chemical category
listed in 40 CFR Section 372.65 (40 CFR Section 372.3).
Establishment - an economic unit, generally at a single physical location, where business is
conducted, or where services or industrial operations are performed (40 CFR Section 372.3).
Facility - all buildings, equipment, structures, and other stationary items which are located on a
single site or on contiguous or adjacent sites and which are owned or operated by the same person
(or by any person which controls, is controlled by or under common control with such person). A
facility may contain more than one establishment (40 CFR Section 372.3).
Full-time Employee - a person who works 2,000 hours per year of full-time equivalent
employment. A facility would calculate the number of full-time employees by totaling the hours
worked during the calendar year by all employees, including contract employees, and dividing the
total by 2,000 hours (40 CFR Section 372.3).
Import - to cause a chemical to be imported into the customs territory of the United States. For
purposes of the definition, to cause means to intend that the chemical be imported and to control
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APPENDIX A 1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
the identity of the imported chemical and the amount of the imported chemical (40 CFR Section
372.3).
Manufacture - to produce, prepare, import, or compound an EPCRA section 313 chemical.
Manufacture also applies to an EPCRA section 313 chemical that is produced coincidentally
during the manufacture, processing, use, or disposal of another chemical or mixture of chemicals,
including an EPCRA section 313 chemical that is separated from that other chemical or mixture
of chemicals as a byproduct, and an EPCRA section 313 chemical that remains in that other
chemical or mixture of chemicals as an impurity (40 CFR Section 372.3).
Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) - the form required to be developed under 29 CFR Section
1910.1200(g), as that section may be amended from time to time (EPCRA Section 329(6)).
Mixture - any combination of two or more chemicals if the combination is not, in whole or in part,
the result of a chemical reaction. However, if the combination was produced by a chemical
reaction, but could have been produced without a chemical reaction, it is also treated as a mixture.
A mixture also includes any combination which consists of a chemical and associated impurities
(40 CFR Section 372.3). A waste is not considered a mixture for EPCRA section 313 reporting
purposes.
Otherwise use - any use of an EPCRA section 313 chemical that is not covered by the terms
manufacture or process, and includes use of an EPCRA section 313 chemical contained in a
mixtures or trade name product. Relabeling or redistributing a container of an EPCRA section
313 chemical where no repackaging of the chemical occurs does not constitute use or processing
of the EPCRA section 313 chemical.
Beginning in the 1998 reporting year (as of January 1, 1998), the definition of otherwise use was
modified to read:
Otherwise use - any use of a EPCRA section 313 chemical, including an EPCRA section 313
chemical contained in a mixture or other trade name product or waste, that is not covered by the
terms manufacture or process. Otherwise use of an EPCRA section 313 chemical does not
include disposal, stabilization (without subsequent distribution in commerce), or treatment for
destruction unless:
(1) the EPCRA section 313 chemical that was disposed, stabilized or treated for destruction was
received from off-site for the purposes of further waste management; or
(2) the EPCRA section 313 chemical that was disposed, stabilized, or treated for destruction was
manufactured as a result of waste management activities on materials received from off-site for
the purposes of further waste management activities. Relabeling or redistributing of the EPCRA
section 313 chemical where no repackaging of the chemical occurs does not constitute otherwise
use or processing of the EPCRA section 313 chemical (40 CFR Section 372.3).
Process - the term process means the preparation of an EPCRA section 313 chemical, after its
manufacture for distribution in commerce: (1) in the same form or physical state as, or in a
different form or physical state from, that in which it was received by the person so preparing
such substance; or (2) as part of an article containing the EPCRA section 313 chemical. Process
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers APPENDIX A
also applies to the processing of an EPCRA section 313 chemical contained in a mixture or trade
name product (40 CFR Section 372.3).
Release - any spilling, leaking, pumping, pouring, emitting, emptying, discharging, injecting,
escaping, leaching, dumping, or disposing into the environment (including the abandonment or
discarding of barrels, containers, and other closed receptacles) of any EPCRA section 313
chemicals (40 CFR Section 372.3).
State - any State of the United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto
Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the United States Virgin Islands, the Northern Mariana Islands,
and any other territory or possession over which the United States has jurisdiction (40 CFR
Section 372.3).
Toxic chemical - a chemical or chemical category listed in 40 CFR Section 372.65 (40 CFR
Section 372.3).
Trade name product - a chemical or mixture of chemicals that is distributed to other persons and
that incorporates an EPCRA section 313 chemical compound that is not identified by the
applicable chemical name or Chemical Abstract Service Registry number list in 40 CFR Section
372.65 (40 CFR Section 372.3).
Tribal Emergency Response Commission or TERC - the commission responsible for carrying out
the provisions of EPCRA in the same manner as a State Emergency Response Commission
(SERC) on federally recognized tribal lands.
Waste management - EPA interprets waste management to include the following activities:
recycling, combustion for energy recovery, treatment for destruction, waste stabilization, and
release., including disposal. Waste management does not include the storage, container transfer,
or tank transfer if no recycling, combustion for energy, treatment for destruction, waste
stabilization, or release of the chemical occurs at the facility (See 62 FR 23834; 23850; May 1,
1997).
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers APPENDIX B
APPENDIX B. EPA REGIONAL CONTACTS
Region 1
Assistance and Pollution Prevention Office
USEPA Region 1 (SPT),
JFK Federal Building
Boston, MA 02203
(617)918-1829
Fax: (617)918-1810
Email: peavey.dwight@epa.gov
Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont
Region 2
Pesticides and Toxics Branch
USEPA Region 2 (MS-105)
2890 Woodbridge Avenue
Building 10
Edison, NJ 08837-3679
(732) 906-6890
Fax: (732)321-6788
Email: lopez.nora@epa.gov
New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands
Region 3
Toxics Programs and Enforcement Branch
USEPA Region 3 (3WC33)
1650 Arch Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103-2029
(215) 814-2072
Fax: (215)814-3114
Email: reilly.william@epa.gov
Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland,
Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia
Region 4
EPCRA Enforcement Section
USEPA Region 4
Atlanta Federal Center
61 Forsyth Street, S.W.
Atlanta, GA 30303
(404) 562-9191
Fax: (404)562-9163
Email: velez.ezequiel@epa.gov
Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi,
North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee
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APPENDIX B 1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
Region 5
Pesticides and Toxics Branch
USEPA Region 5 (DT-8J)
77 West Jackson Boulevard
Chicago, IL 60604
(312)886-6219
Fax: (312)353-4788
Email: codina.thelma@epa.gov
Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio,
Wisconsin
Region 6
Pesticides and Toxics Substances Branch
USEPA Region 6 (6PDT)
1445 Ross Avenue, Suite 1200
Dallas, TX 75202-2733
(214)665-8013
Fax: (214)665-6762
Email: layne.warren@epa.gov
Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas
Region 7
Air, RCRA and Toxics Division
USEPA Region 7 (ARTD/CRffi)
726 Minnesota Avenue
Kansas City, KS 66101
(913)551-7472
Fax: (913)551-7065
Email: hirtz.james@epa.gov
Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska
Region 8
Office of Pollution Prevention, Pesticides and Toxics
USEPA Region 8 (8P-P3T)
999 18th Street, Suite 500
Denver, CO 80202
(303)312-6447
Fax: (303)312-6044
Email: dhieux.joyel@epa.gov
Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota,
Utah, Wyoming
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers APPENDIX B
Region 9
Pesticides and Toxics Branch
USEPA Region 9 (CMD-4-2)
75 Hawthorne Street
San Francisco, CA 94105
(415)744-1121
Fax: (415)744-1073
Email: browning.adam@epa.gov
Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada, American Samoa, Guam, Commonwealth of the Northern
Mariana Islands
Region 10
Office of Waste & Chemicals Management
USEPA Region 10 (WCM-128)
1200 Sixth Avenue
Seattle, WA 98101
(206)553-4016
Fax: (206)553-8509
Email: colt.christina@epa.gov
Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, Washington
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1999 EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers APPENDIX C
APPENDIX C. EXECUTIVE ORDER 13148
Executive Order 13148 - Greening the Government Through Leadership in
Environmental Management
Federal Register
Vol. 58, No. 150
Wednesday, April 26, 2000
Presidential Documents
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24595
Federal Register
Vol. 65, No. 81
Wednesday, April 26, 2000
Presidential Documents
Title 3—
The President
Executive Order 13148 of April 21, 2000
Greening the Government Through Leadership in
Environmental Management
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the
laws of the United States of America, including the Emergency Planning
and Community Right-to-Know Act of 1986 (42 U.S.C. 11001-11050)
(EPCRA), the Pollution Prevention Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 13101-13109)
(PPA), the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7401-7671q) (CAA), and section 301
of title 3, United States Code, it is hereby ordered as follows:
PART 1—PREAMBLE
Section 101. Federal Environmental Leadership. The head of each Federal
agency is responsible for ensuring that all necessary actions are taken to
integrate environmental accountability into agency day-to-day decision-
making and long-term planning processes, across all agency missions, activi-
ties, and functions. Consequently, environmental management considerations
must be a fundamental and integral component of Federal Government poli-
cies, operations, planning, and management. The head of each Federal agency
is responsible for meeting the goals and requirements of this order.
PART 2—GOALS
Sec. 201. Environmental Management. Through development and implemen-
tation of environmental management systems, each agency shall ensure that
strategies are established to support environmental leadership programs,
policies, and procedures and that agency senior level managers explicitly
and actively endorse these strategies.
Sec. 202. Environmental Compliance. Each agency shall comply with environ-
mental regulations by establishing and implementing environmental compli-
ance audit programs and policies that emphasize pollution prevention as
a means to both achieve and maintain environmental compliance.
Sec. 203. Right-to-Know and Pollution Prevention. Through timely planning
and reporting under the EPCRA, Federal facilities shall be leaders and respon-
sible members of their communities by informing the public and their work-
ers of possible sources of pollution resulting from facility operations. Each
agency shall strive to reduce or eliminate harm to human health and the
environment from releases of pollutants to the environment. Each agency
shall advance the national policy that, whenever feasible and cost-effective,
pollution should be prevented or reduced at the source. Funding for regu-
latory compliance programs shall emphasize pollution prevention as a means
to address environmental compliance.
Sec. 204. Release Reduction: Toxic Chemicals. Through innovative pollution
prevention, effective facility management, and sound acquisition and procure-
ment practices, each agency shall reduce its reported Toxic Release Inventory
(TRI) releases and off-site transfers of toxic chemicals for treatment and
disposal by 10 percent annually, or by 40 percent overall by December
31, 2006.
Sec. 205. Use Reduction: Toxic Chemicals and Hazardous Substances and
Other Pollutants. Through identification of proven substitutes and established
facility management practices, including pollution prevention, each agency
shall reduce its use of selected toxic chemicals, hazardous substances, and
pollutants, or its generation of hazardous and radioactive waste types at
its facilities by 50 percent by December 31, 2006. If an agency is unable
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24596 Federal Register/Vol. 65, No. 81/Wednesday, April 26, 2000/Presidential Documents
to reduce the use of selected chemicals, that agency will reduce the use
of selected hazardous substances or its generation of other pollutants, such
as hazardous and radioactive waste types, at its facilities by 50 percent
by December 31, 2006.
Sec. 206. Reductions in Ozone-Depleting Substances. Through evaluating
present and future uses of ozone-depleting substances and maximizing the
purchase and the use of safe, cost effective, and environmentally preferable
alternatives, each agency shall develop a plan to phase out the procurement
of Class I ozone-depleting substances for all nonexcepted uses by December
31,2010.
Sec. 207. Environmentally and Economically Beneficial Landscaping. Each
agency shall strive to promote the sustainable management of Federal facility
lands through the implementation of cost-effective, environmentally sound
landscaping practices, and programs to reduce adverse impacts to the natural
environment.
PART 3—PLANNING AND ACCOUNTABILITY
Sec. 301. Annual Budget Submission. Federal agencies shall place high
priority on obtaining funding and resources needed for implementation of
the Greening the Government Executive Orders, including funding to address
findings and recommendations from environmental management system au-
dits or facility compliance audits conducted under sections 401 and 402
of this order. Federal agencies shall make such requests as required in
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-ll.
Sec. 302. Application of Life Cycle Assessment Concepts. Each agency with
facilities shall establish a pilot program to apply life cycle assessment and
environmental cost accounting principles. To the maximum extent feasible
and cost-effective, agencies shall apply those principles elsewhere in the
agency to meet the goals and requirements of this order. Such analysis
shall be considered in the process established in the OMB Capital Program-
ming Guide and OMB Circular A—11. The Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA), in coordination with the Workgroup established in section 306 of
this order, shall, to the extent feasible, assist agencies in identifying, applying,
and developing tools that reflect life cycle assessment and environmental
cost accounting principles and provide technical assistance to agencies in
developing life cycle assessments and environmental cost accounting assess-
ments under this Part.
Sec. 303. Pollution Prevention to Address Compliance. Each agency shall
ensure that its environmental regulatory compliance funding policies promote
the use of pollution prevention to achieve and maintain environmental
compliance at the agency's facilities. Agencies shall adopt a policy to pref-
erentially use pollution prevention projects and activities to correct and
prevent noncompliance with environmental regulatory requirements. Agency
funding requests for facility compliance with Federal, State, and local envi-
ronmental regulatory requirements shall emphasize pollution prevention
through source reduction as the means of first choice to ensure compliance,
with reuse and recycling alternatives having second priority as a means
of compliance.
Sec. 304. Pollution Prevention Return-on-Investment Programs. Each agency
shall develop and implement a pollution prevention program at its facilities
that compares the life cycle costs of treatment and/or disposal of waste
and pollutant streams to the life cycle costs of alternatives that eliminate
or reduce toxic chemicals or pollutants at the source. Each agency shall
implement those projects that are life-cycle cost-effective, or otherwise offer
substantial environmental or economic benefits.
Sec. 305. Policies, Strategies, and Plans.
(a) Within 12 months of the date of this order, each agency shall ensure
that the goals and requirements of this order are incorporated into existing
agency environmental directives, policies, and documents affected by the
requirements and goals of this order. Where such directives and policies
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do not already exist, each agency shall, within 12 months of the date
of this order, prepare and endorse a written agency environmental manage-
ment strategy to achieve the requirements and goals of this order. Agency
preparation of directives, policies, and documents shall reflect the nature,
scale, and environmental impacts of the agency's activities, products, or
services. Agencies are encouraged to include elements of relevant agency
policies or strategies developed under this part in agency planning documents
prepared under the Government Performance and Results Act of 1993, Public
Law 103-62.
(b) By March 31, 2002, each agency shall ensure that its facilities develop
a written plan that sets forth the facility's contribution to the goals and
requirements established in this order. The plan should reflect the size
and complexity of the facility. Where pollution prevention plans or other
formal environmental planning instruments have been prepared for agency
facilities, an agency may elect to update those plans to meet the requirements
and goals of this section.
(c) The Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Council shall develop acqui-
sition policies and procedures for contractors to supply agencies with all
information necessary for compliance with this order. Once the appropriate
FAR clauses have been published, agencies shall use them in all applicable
contracts. In addition, to the extent that compliance with this order is
made more difficult due to lack of information from existing contractors,
or concessioners, each agency shall take practical steps to obtain the informa-
tion needed to comply with this order from such contractors or concessioners.
Sec. 306. Interagency Environmental Leadership Workgroup. Within 4 months
of the date of this order, EPA shall convene and chair an Interagency
Environmental Leadership Workgroup (the Workgroup) with senior-level rep-
resentatives from all executive agencies and other interested independent
Government agencies affected by this order. The Workgroup shall develop
policies and guidance required by this order and member agencies shall
facilitate implementation of the requirements of this order in their respective
agencies. Workgroup members shall coordinate with their Agency Environ-
mental Executive (AEE) designated under section 301(d) of Executive Order
13101 and may request the assistance of their AEE in resolving issues
that may arise among members in developing policies and guidance related
to this order. If the AEEs are unable to resolve the issues, they may request
the assistance of the Chair of the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ).
Sec. 307. Annual Reports. Each agency shall submit an annual progress
report to the Administrator on implementation of this order. The reports
shall include a description of the progress that the agency has made in
complying with all aspects of this order, including, but not limited to,
progress in achieving the reduction goals in sections 502, 503, and 505
of this order. Each agency may prepare and submit the annual report in
electronic format. A copy of the report shall be submitted to the Federal
Environmental Executive (FEE) by EPA for use in the biennial Greening
the Government Report to the President prepared in accordance with Execu-
tive Order 13101. Within 9 months of the date of this order, EPA, in
coordination with the Workgroup established under section 306 of this order,
shall prepare guidance regarding the information and timing for the annual
report. The Workgroup shall coordinate with those agencies responsible
for Federal agency reporting guidance under the Greening the Government
Executive orders to streamline reporting requirements and reduce agency
and facility-level reporting burdens. The first annual report shall cover cal-
endar year 2000 activities.
PART 4—PROMOTING ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT AND
LEADERSHIP
Sec. 401. Agency and Facility Environmental Management Systems. To attain
the goals of section 201 of this order:
(a) Within 18 months of the date of this order, each agency shall conduct
an agency-level environmental management system self assessment based
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on the Code of Environmental Management Principles for Federal Agencies
developed by the EPA (61 Fed. Reg. 54062) and/or another appropriate
environmental management system framework. Each assessment shall include
a review of agency environmental leadership goals, objectives, and targets.
Where appropriate, the assessments may be conducted at the service, bureau,
or other comparable level.
(b) Within 24 months of the date of this order, each agency shall implement
environmental management systems through pilot projects at selected agency
facilities based on the Code of Environmental Management Principles for
Federal Agencies and/or another appropriate environmental management
system framework. By December 31, 2005, each agency shall implement
an environmental management system at all appropriate agency facilities
based on facility size, complexity, and the environmental aspects of facility
operations. The facility environmental management system shall include
measurable environmental goals, objectives, and targets that are reviewed
and updated annually. Once established, environmental management system
performance measures shall be incorporated in agency facility audit protocols.
Sec. 402. Facility Compliance Audits. To attain the goals of section 202
of this order:
(a) Within 12 months of the date of this order, each agency that does
not have an established regulatory environmental compliance audit program
shall develop and implement a program to conduct facility environmental
compliance audits and begin auditing at its facilities within 6 months of
the development of that program.
(b) An agency with an established regulatory environmental compliance
audit program may elect to conduct environmental management system audits
in lieu of regulatory environmental compliance audits at selected facilities.
(c) Facility environmental audits shall be conducted periodically. Each
agency is encouraged to conduct audits not less than every 3 years from
the date of the initial or previous audit. The scope and frequency of audits
shall be based on facility size, complexity, and the environmental aspects
of facility operations. As appropriate, each agency shall include tenant,
contractor, and concessioner activities in facility audits.
(d) Each agency shall conduct internal reviews and audits and shall take
such other steps, as may be necessary, to monitor its facilities' compliance
with sections 501 and 504 of this order.
(e) Each agency shall consider findings from the assessments or audits
conducted under Part 4 in program planning under section 301 of this
order and in the preparation and revisions to facility plans prepared under
section 305 of this order.
(f) Upon request and to the extent practicable, the EPA shall provide
technical assistance in meeting the requirements of Part 4 by conducting
environmental management reviews at Federal facilities and developing poli-
cies and guidance for conducting environmental compliance audits and im-
plementing environmental management systems at Federal facilities.
Sec. 403. Environmental Leadership and Agency Awards Programs.
(a) Within 12 months of the date of this order, the Administrator shall
establish a Federal Government environmental leadership program to promote
and recognize outstanding environmental management performance in agen-
cies and facilities.
(b) Each agency shall develop an internal agency-wide awards program
to reward and highlight innovative programs and individuals showing out-
standing environmental leadership in implementing this order. In addition,
based upon criteria developed by the EPA in coordination with the
Workgroup established in section 306 of this order, Federal employees who
demonstrate outstanding leadership in implementation of this order may
be considered for recognition under the White House awards program set
forth in section 803 of Executive Order 13101 of September 14, 1998.
Sec. 404. Management Leadership and Performance Evaluations.
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Federal Register/Vol. 65, No. 81/Wednesday, April 26, 2000/Presidential Documents 24599
(a) To ensure awareness of and support for the environmental requirements
of this order, each agency shall include training on the provisions of the
Greening the Government Executive orders in standard senior level manage-
ment training as well as training for program managers, contracting personnel,
procurement and acquisition personnel, facility managers, contractors, con-
cessioners, and other personnel as appropriate. In coordination with the
Workgroup established under section 306 of this order, the EPA shall prepare
guidance on implementation of this section.
(b) To recognize and reinforce the responsibilities of facility and senior
headquarters program managers, regional environmental coordinators and
officers, their superiors, and, to the extent practicable and appropriate, others
vital to the implementation of this order, each agency shall include successful
implementation of pollution prevention, community awareness, and environ-
mental management into its position descriptions and performance evalua-
tions for those positions.
Sec. 405. Compliance Assistance.
(a) Upon request and to the extent practicable, the EPA shall provide
technical advice and assistance to agencies to foster full compliance with
environmental regulations and all aspects of this order.
(b) Within 12 months of the date of this order, the EPA shall develop
a compliance assistance center to provide technical assistance for Federal
facility compliance with environmental regulations and all aspects of this
order.
(c) To enhance landscaping options and awareness, the United States
Department of Agriculture (USDA) shall provide information on the suit-
ability, propagation, and the use of native plants for landscaping to all
agencies and the general public by USDA in conjunction with the center
under subsection (b) of this section. In implementing Part 6 of this order,
agencies are encouraged to develop model demonstration programs in coordi-
nation with the USDA.
Sec. 406. Compliance Assurance.
(a) In consultation with other agencies, the EPA may conduct such reviews
and inspections as may be necessary to monitor compliance with sections
501 and 504 of this order. Each agency is encouraged to cooperate fully
with the efforts of the EPA to ensure compliance with those sections.
(b) Whenever the Administrator notifies an agency that it is not in compli-
ance with section 501 or 504 of this order, the agency shall provide the
EPA a detailed plan for achieving compliance as promptly as practicable.
(c) The Administrator shall report annually to the President and the public
on agency compliance with the provisions of sections 501 and 504 of this
order.
Sec. 407. Improving Environmental Management. To ensure that government-
wide goals for pollution prevention are advanced, each agency is encouraged
to incorporate its environmental leadership goals into its Strategic and An-
nual Performance Plans required by the Government Performance and Results
Act of 1993, Public Law 103-62, starting with performance plans accom-
panying the FY 2002 budget.
PART 5—EMERGENCY PLANNING, COMMUNITY RIGHT-TO-KNOW, AND
POLLUTION PREVENTION
Sec. 501. Toxics Release Inventory/Pollution Prevention Act Reporting. To
attain the goals of section 203 of this order:
(a) Each agency shall comply with the provisions set forth in section
313 of EPCRA, section 6607 of PPA, all implementing regulations, and
future amendments to these authorities, in light of applicable EPA guidance.
(b) Each agency shall comply with these provisions without regard to
the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) or North American Industrial
Classification System (NAICS) delineations. Except as described in subsection
(d) of this section, all other existing statutory or regulatory limitations or
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exemptions on the application of EPCRA section 313 to specific activities
at specific agency facilities apply to the reporting requirements set forth
in subsection (a) of this section.
(c) Each agency required to report under subsection (a) of this section
shall do so using electronic reporting as provided in EPA's EPCRA section
313 guidance.
(d) Within 12 months of the date of this order, the Administrator shall
review the impact on reporting of existing regulatory exemptions on the
application of EPCRA section 313 at Federal facilities. Where feasible, this
review shall include pilot studies at Federal facilities. If the review indicates
that application of existing exemptions to Federal Government reporting
under this section precludes public reporting of substantial amounts of
toxic chemicals under subsection 501(a), the EPA shall prepare guidance,
in coordination with the Workgroup established under section 306 of this
order, clarifying application of the exemptions at Federal facilities. In devel-
oping the guidance, the EPA should consider similar application of such
regulatory limitations and exemptions by the private sector. To the extent
feasible, the guidance developed by the EPA shall be consistent with the
reasonable application of such regulatory limitations and exemptions in
the private sector. The guidance shall ensure reporting consistent with the
goal of public access to information under section 313 of EPCRA and section
6607 of PPA. The guidance shall be submitted to the AEEs established
under section 301(d) of Executive Order 13101 for review and endorsement.
Each agency shall apply any guidance to reporting at its facilities as soon
as practicable but no later than for reporting for the next calendar year
following release of the guidance.
(e) The EPA shall coordinate with other interested Federal agencies to
carry out pilot projects to collect and disseminate information about the
release and other waste management of chemicals associated with the envi-
ronmental response and restoration at their facilities and sites. The pilot
projects will focus on releases and other waste management of chemicals
associated with environmental response and restoration at facilities and
sites where the activities generating wastes do not otherwise meet EPCRA
section 313 thresholds for manufacture, process, or other use. Each agency
is encouraged to identify applicable facilities and voluntarily report under
subsection (a) of this section the releases and other waste management
of toxic chemicals managed during environmental response and restoration,
regardless of whether the facility otherwise would report under subsection
(a). The releases and other waste management of chemicals associated with
environmental response and restoration voluntarily reported under this sub-
section will not be included in the accounting established under sections
503(a) and (c) of this order.
Sec. 502. Release Reduction: Toxic Chemicals. To attain the goals of section
204 of this order:
(a) Beginning with reporting for calendar year 2001 activities, each agency
reporting under section 501 of this order shall adopt a goal of reducing,
where cost effective, the agency's total releases of toxic chemicals to the
environment and off-site transfers of such chemicals for treatment and dis-
posal by at least 10 percent annually, or by 40 percent overall by December
31, 2006. Beginning with activities for calendar year 2001, the baseline
for measuring progress in meeting the reduction goal will be the aggregate
of all such releases and off-site transfers of such chemicals for treatment
and disposal as reported by all of the agency's facilities under section
501 of this order. The list of toxic chemicals applicable to this goal is
the EPCRA section 313 list as of December 1, 2000. If an agency achieves
the 40 percent reduction goal prior to December 31, 2006, that agency
shall establish a new baseline and reduction goal based on agency priorities.
(b) Where an agency is unable to pursue the reduction goal established
in subsection (a) for certain chemicals that are mission critical and/or needed
to protect human health and the environment or where agency off-site transfer
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of toxic chemicals for treatment is directly associated with environmental
restoration activities, that agency may request a waiver from the EPA for
all or part of the requirement in subsection (a) of this section. As appropriate,
waiver requests must provide: (1) an explanation of the mission critical
use of the chemical; (2) an explanation of the nature of the need for the
chemical to protect human health; (3) a description of efforts to identify
a less harmful substitute chemical or alternative processes to reduce the
release and transfer of the chemical in question; and (4) a description of
the off-site transfers of toxic chemicals for treatment directly associated
with environmental restoration activities. The EPA shall respond to the
waiver request within 90 days and may grant such a waiver for no longer
than 2 years. An agency may resubmit a request for waiver at the end
of that period. The waiver under this section shall not alter requirements
to report under section 501 of this order.
(c) Where a specific component (e.g., bureau, service, or command) within
an agency achieves a 75 percent reduction in its 1999 reporting year publicly
reported total releases of toxic chemicals to the environment and off-site
transfers of such chemicals for treatment and disposal, based on the 1994
baseline established in Executive Order 12856, that agency may independ-
ently elect to establish a reduction goal for that component lower than
the 40 percent target established in subsection (a) of this section. The agency
shall formally notify the Workgroup established in section 306 of this order
of the elected reduction target.
Sec. 503. Use Reduction: Toxic Chemicals, Hazardous Substances, and Other
Pollutants. To attain the goals of section 205 of this order:
(a) Within 18 months of the date of this order, each agency with facilities
shall develop and support goals to reduce the use at such agencies' facilities
of the priority chemicals on the list under subsection (b) of this section
for identified applications and purposes, or alternative chemicals and pollut-
ants the agency identifies under subsection (c) of this section, by at least
50 percent by December 31, 2006.
(b) Within 9 months of the date of this order the Administrator, in coordina-
tion with the Workgroup established in section 306 of this order, shall
develop a list of not less than 15 priority chemicals used by the Federal
Government that may result in significant harm to human health or the
environment and that have known, readily available, less harmful substitutes
for identified applications and purposes. In addition to identifying the appli-
cations and purposes to which such reductions apply, the Administrator,
in coordination with the Workgroup shall identify a usage threshold below
which this section shall not apply. The chemicals will be selected from
listed EPCRA section 313 toxic chemicals and, where appropriate, other
regulated hazardous substances or pollutants. In developing the list, the
Administrator, in coordination with the Workgroup shall consider: (1) envi-
ronmental factors including toxicity, persistence, and bio-accumulation; (2)
availability of known, less environmentally harmful substitute chemicals
that can be used in place of the priority chemical for identified applications
and purposes; (3) availability of known, less environmentally harmful proc-
esses that can be used in place of the priority chemical for identified
applications and purposes; (4) relative costs of alternative chemicals or
processes; and (5) potential risk and environmental and human exposure
based upon applications and uses of the chemicals by Federal agencies
and facilities. In identifying alternatives, the Administrator should take into
consideration the guidance issued under section 503 of Executive Order
13101.
(c) If an agency, which has facilities required to report under EPCRA,
uses at its facilities less than five of the priority chemicals on the list
developed in subsection (b) of this section for the identified applications
and purposes, the agency shall develop, within 12 months of the date
of this order, a list of not less than five chemicals that may include priority
chemicals under subsection (b) of this section or other toxic chemicals,
hazardous substances, and/or other pollutants the agency uses or generates,
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24602 Federal Register/Vol. 65, No. 81/Wednesday, April 26, 2000/Presidential Documents
the release, transfer or waste management of which may result in significant
harm to human health or the environment.
(d) In lieu of requirements under subsection (a) of this section, an agency
may, upon concurrence with the Workgroup established under section 306
of this order, develop within 12 months of the date of this order, a list
of not less than five priority hazardous or radioactive waste types generated
by its facilities. Within 18 months of the date of this order, the agency
shall develop and support goals to reduce the agency's generation of these
wastes by at least 50 percent by December 31, 2006. To the maximum
extent possible, such reductions shall be achieved by implementing source
reduction practices.
(e) The baseline for measuring reductions for purposes of achieving the
50 percent reduction goal in subsections (a) and (d) of this section for
each agency is the first calendar year following the development of the
list of priority chemicals under subsection (b) of this section.
(f) Each agency shall undertake pilot projects at selected facilities to gather
and make publicly available materials accounting data related to the toxic
chemicals, hazardous substances, and/or other pollutants identified under
subsections (b), (c), or (d) of this section.
(g) Within 12 months of the date of this order, the Administrator shall
develop guidance on implementing this section in coordination with the
Workgroup. The EPA shall develop technical assistance materials to assist
agencies in meeting the 50 percent reduction goal of this section.
(h) Where an agency can demonstrate to the Workgroup that it has pre-
viously reduced the use of a priority chemical identified in subsection
503(b) by 50 percent, then the agency may elect to waive the 50 percent
reduction goal for that chemical.
Sec. 504. Emergency Planning and Reporting Responsibilities. Each agency
shall comply with the provisions set forth in sections 301 through 312
of the EPCRA, all implementing regulations, and any future amendments
to these authorities, in light of any applicable guidance as provided by
the EPA.
Sec. 505. Reductions in Ozone-Depleting Substances. To attain the goals
of section 206 of this order:
(a) Each agency shall ensure that its facilities: (1) maximize the use of
safe alternatives to ozone-depleting substances, as approved by the EPA's
Significant New Alternatives Policy (SNAP) program; (2) consistent with
subsection (b) of this section, evaluate the present and future uses of ozone-
depleting substances, including making assessments of existing and future
needs for such materials, and evaluate use of, and plans for recycling,
refrigerants, and halons; and (3) exercise leadership, develop exemplary
practices, and disseminate information on successful efforts in phasing out
ozone-depleting substances.
(b) Within 12 months of the date of this order, each agency shall develop
a plan to phase out the procurement of Class I ozone-depleting substances
for all nonexcepted uses by December 31, 2010. Plans should target cost
effective reduction of environmental risk by phasing out Class I ozone deplet-
ing substance applications as the equipment using those substances reaches
its expected service life. Exceptions to this requirement include all exceptions
found in current or future applicable law, treaty, regulation, or Executive
order.
(c) Each agency shall amend its personal property management policies
and procedures to preclude disposal of ozone depleting substances removed
or reclaimed from its facilities or equipment, including disposal as part
of a contract, trade, or donation, without prior coordination with the Depart-
ment of Defense (DoD). Where the recovered ozone-depleting substance is
a critical requirement for DoD missions, the agency shall transfer the materials
to the DoD. The DoD will bear the costs of such transfer.
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Federal Register/Vol. 65, No. 81/Wednesday, April 26, 2000/Presidential Documents 24603
PART 6—LANDSCAPING MANAGEMENT PRACTICES
Sec. 601. Implementation.
(a) Within 12 months from the date of this order, each agency shall
incorporate the Guidance for Presidential Memorandum on Environmentally
and Economically Beneficial Landscape Practices on Federal Landscaped
Grounds (60 Fed. Reg. 40837) developed by the FEE into landscaping pro-
grams, policies, and practices.
(b) Within 12 months of the date of this order, the FEE shall form a
workgroup of appropriate Federal agency representatives to review and up-
date the guidance in subsection (a) of this section, as appropriate.
(c) Each agency providing funding for nonfederal projects involving land-
scaping projects shall furnish funding recipients with information on environ-
mentally and economically beneficial landscaping practices and work with
the recipients to support and encourage application of such practices on
Federally funded projects.
Sec. 602. Technical Assistance and Outreach. The EPA, the General Services
Administration (GSA), and the USD A shall provide technical assistance
in accordance with their respective authorities on environmentally and eco-
nomically beneficial landscaping practices to agencies and their facilities.
PART 7—ACQUISITION AND PROCUREMENT
Sec. 701. Limiting Procurement of Toxic Chemicals, Hazardous Substances,
and Other Pollutants.
(a) Within 12 months of the date of this order, each agency shall implement
training programs to ensure that agency procurement officials and acquisition
program managers are aware of the requirements of this order and its applica-
bility to those individuals.
(b) Within 24 months of the date of this order, each agency shall determine
the feasibility of implementing centralized procurement and distribution
(e.g., "pharmacy") programs at its facilities for tracking, distribution, and
management of toxic or hazardous materials and, where appropriate, imple-
ment such programs.
(c) Under established schedules for review of standardized documents,
DoD and GSA, and other agencies, as appropriate, shall review their standard-
ized documents and identify opportunities to eliminate or reduce their use
of chemicals included on the list of priority chemicals developed by the
EPA under subsection 503(b) of this order, and make revisions as appropriate.
(d) Each agency shall follow the policies and procedures for toxic chemical
release reporting in accordance with FAR section 23.9 effective as of the
date of this order and policies and procedures on Federal compliance with
right-to-know laws and pollution prevention requirements in accordance
with FAR section 23.10 effective as of the date of this order.
Sec. 702. Environmentally Benign Adhesives. Within 12 months after environ-
mentally benign pressure sensitive adhesives for paper products become
commercially available, each agency shall revise its specifications for paper
products using adhesives and direct the purchase of paper products using
those adhesives, whenever technically practicable and cost effective. Each
agency should consider products using the environmentally benign pressure
sensitive adhesives approved by the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) and listed
on the USPS Qualified Products List for pressure sensitive recyclable adhe-
sives.
Sec. 703. Ozone-Depleting Substances. Each agency shall follow the policies
and procedures for the acquisition of items that contain, use, or are manufac-
tured with ozone-depleting substances in accordance with FAR section 23.8
and other applicable FAR provisions.
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24604 Federal Register/Vol. 65, No. 81/Wednesday, April 26, 2000/Presidential Documents
Sec. 704. Environmentally and Economically Beneficial Landscaping Prac-
tices.
(a) Within 18 months of the date of this order, each agency shall have
in place acquisition and procurement practices, including provision of land-
scaping services that conform to the guidance referred to in section 601
of this order, for the use of environmentally and economically beneficial
landscaping practices. At a minimum, such practices shall be consistent
with the policies in the guidance referred to in section 601 of this order.
(b) In implementing landscaping policies, each agency shall purchase envi-
ronmentally preferable and recycled content products, including EPA-des-
ignated items such as compost and mulch, that contribute to environmentally
and economically beneficial practices.
PART 8—EXEMPTIONS
Sec. 801. National Security Exemptions. Subject to subsection 902(c) of
this order and except as otherwise required by applicable law, in the interest
of national security, the head of any agency may request from the President
an exemption from complying with the provisions of any or all provisions
of this order for particular agency facilities, provided that the procedures
set forth in section 120(j)(l) of the Comprehensive Environmental Response,
Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980, as amended (42 U.S.C. 9620(j)(l)),
are followed, with the following exceptions: (a) an exemption issued under
this section will be for a specified period of time that may exceed 1 year;
(b) notice of any exemption granted under this section for provisions not
otherwise required by law is only required to the Director of OMB, the
Chair of the CEQ, and the Director of the National Security Council; and
(c) an exemption under this section may be issued due to lack of appropria-
tions, provided that the head of the agency requesting the exemption shows
that necessary funds were requested by the agency in its budget submission
and agency plan under Executive Order 12088 of October 13, 1978, and
were not contained in the President's budget request or the Congress failed
to make available the requested appropriation. To the maximum extent
practicable, and without compromising national security, each agency shall
strive to comply with the purposes, goals, and implementation steps in
this order. Nothing in this order affects limitations on the dissemination
of classified information pursuant to law, regulation, or Executive order.
Sec. 802. Compliance. After January 1, 2002, OMB, in consultation with
the Chair of the Workgroup established by section 306 of this order, may
modify the compliance requirements for an agency under this order, if
the agency is unable to comply with the requirements of the order. An
agency requesting modification must show that it has made substantial good
faith efforts to comply with the order. The cost-effectiveness of implementa-
tion of the order can be a factor in OMB's decision to modify the requirements
for that agency's compliance with the order.
PART 9—GENERAL PROVISIONS
Sec. 901. Revocation. Executive Order 12843 of April 21, 1993, Executive
Order 12856 of August 3, 1993, the Executive Memorandum on Environ-
mentally Beneficial Landscaping of April 26, 1994, Executive Order 12969
of August 8, 1995, and section 1-4. "Pollution Control Plan" of Executive
Order 12088 of October 13, 1978, are revoked.
Sec. 902. Limitations.
(a) This order is intended only to improve the internal management of
the executive branch and is not intended to create any right, benefit, or
trust responsibility, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law by a party
against the United States, its agencies, its officers, or any other person.
(b) This order applies to Federal facilities in any State of the United
States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam,
American Samoa, the United States Virgin Islands, the Northern Mariana
Islands, and any other territory or possession over which the United States
has jurisdiction. Each agency with facilities outside of these areas, however,
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Federal Register/Vol. 65, No. 81/Wednesday, April 26, 2000/Presidential Documents 24605
is encouraged to make best efforts to comply with the goals of this order
for those facilities.
(c) Nothing in this order alters the obligations under EPCRA, PPA, and
CAA independent of this order for Government-owned, contractor-operated
facilities and Government corporations owning or operating facilities or sub-
jects such facilities to EPCRA , PPA, or CAA if they are otherwise excluded.
However, each agency shall include the releases and other waste management
of chemicals for all such facilities to meet the agency's reporting responsibil-
ities under section 501 of this order.
(d) Nothing in this order shall be construed to make the provisions of
CAA sections 304 and EPCRA sections 325 and 326 applicable to any
agency or facility, except to the extent that an agency or facility would
independently be subject to such provisions.
Sec. 903. Community Outreach. Each agency is encouraged to establish
a process for local community advice and outreach for its facilities relevant
to aspects of this and other related Greening the Government Executive
orders. All strategies and plans developed under this order shall be made
available to the public upon request.
PART 10—DEFINITIONS
For purposes of this order:
Sec. 1001. General. Terms that are not defined in this part but that are
defined in Executive Orders 13101 and 13123 have the meaning given in
those Executive orders. For the purposes of Part 5 of this order all definitions
in EPCRA and PPA and implementing regulations at 40 CFR Parts 370
and 372 apply.
Sec. 1002. "Administrator" means the Administrator of the EPA.
Sec. 1003. "Environmental cost accounting" means the modification of cost
attribution systems and financial analysis practices specifically to directly
track environmental costs that are traditionally hidden in overhead accounts
to the responsible products, processes, facilities or activities.
Sec. 1004. "Facility" means any building, installation, structure, land, and
other property owned or operated by, or constructed or manufactured and
leased to, the Federal Government, where the Federal Government is formally
accountable for compliance under environmental regulation (e.g., permits,
reports/records and/or planning requirements) with requirements pertaining
to discharge, emission, release, spill, or management of any waste, contami-
nant, hazardous chemical, or pollutant. This term includes a group of facili-
ties at a single location managed as an integrated operation, as well as
government owned contractor operated facilities.
Sec. 1005. "Environmentally benign pressure sensitive adhesives" means
adhesives for stamps, labels, and other paper products that can be easily
treated and removed during the paper recycling process.
Sec. 1006. "Ozone-depleting substance" means any substance designated
as a Class I or Class II substance by EPA in 40 CFR Part 82.
Sec. 1007. "Pollution prevention" means "source reduction," as defined
in the PPA, and other practices that reduce or eliminate the creation of
pollutants through: (a) increased efficiency in the use of raw materials,
energy, water, or other resources; or (b) protection of natural resources
by conservation.
Sec. 1008. "Greening the Government Executive orders" means this order
and the series of orders on greening the government including Executive
Order 13101 of September 14, 1998, Executive Order 13123 of June 3,
1999, Executive Order 13134 of August 12, 1999, and other future orders
as appropriate.
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24606 Federal Register/Vol. 65, No. 81/Wednesday, April 26, 2000/Presidential Documents
Sec. 1009. "Environmental aspects" means the elements of an organization's
activities, products, or services that can interact with the environment.
[FR Doc. 00-10550
Filed 4-25-00; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3195-01-P
THE WHITE HOUSE,
April 21, 2000.
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Key Words by Question Number
INDEX
INDEX. KEY WORDS BY QUESTION NUMBER
A
Accidental Releases 130
Acronyms 128
Active Shipping Papers 104, 111
Activity Ratio 125
Address 129
Administrative Buildings 91
Aircraft De-icing 62
Aircraft Refueling 61
Air Emissions 109
Article 6
Articles Exemption 66, 67, 68
B
Background 5
Barges 108
Blueprint Machines 84
Certification Statement 131
Chemical Identities 101
Chemical Composition 60
Cleaning Activities 50
Cleaning Materials 90, 91, 92
Cleaning Solvents 51
Coal 107
Combustion 120
Compliance Requirements 3, 4
Compound 103
Compressed Air 94
Construction Activities 51
Contaminated Soil 47, 48
Contractors 12, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 34, 35,
45, 50, 79, 126
Creosote, Gradual Release 87
Customs Territory 11
D
De Minimis Exemption 69
Distribution in Commerce 54
Dust Control 93
E
Emissions Data 110
Employee Threshold 33, 34
Employees 34, 35
Energy Recovery 120
EO 12856 1
EO 12856 Compliance Requirements 3, 4,
56
EO 12856 Requirements 24, 25, 30
EPCRA Hotline 2
Establishment 19, 20
Exemption 55
Existing Structure 88
External Funding Sources 49
Facility 9, 10, 11, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 132
Facility Maintenance Exemption 90, 91,
92,93
Facility Name 127
Federal Agency 7, 18, 22
Federal Agency Name 128
50% Reduction Goal 98, 99, 100
Final Disposition 114
Fire Retardants 54
Firing Ranges 124
Foreign Facilities 39
Form R Report 101
FOTW 115
Fuel 104
Fuels/Bulk 46
Fugitive Releases 124
Fumes 67
GOCOs 126, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 34, 35
Grindings 67
H
Hospitals 92, 52
Housekeeping 81
73
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INDEX
Key Words by Question Number
Import 3 8, 39, 106
Incineration of Liquid Wastes 109
Intake Water Exemption 94
"Laboratory" in the Name 80
Laboratory Exemption 70, 71, 72, 73, 74,
75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80,
81, 82
Landlord/Real Estate Interest 13, 14, 15, 16
Latitude and Longitude 133
Lead 66
Lead Bullets 124
Leadership Role 30, 42, 55, 61, 62, 63, 70
Legacy Wastes 123
Loading of Vehicles 111
M
Manufacture 38
Manufacturing 68, 106
Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDSs) 59
Maximum Amount 95
Metal Plates 67
Metals Cooling Pond 113
Metals 44
Mixture 40, 103
Monitoring 110
Motor Vehicle Exemption 61, 62, 63, 64, 65
Multi-Establishment Reporting 121, 122,
132
Multi-Jurisdiction Reporting 17
Multiple Activities 37
Multiple Years 40
Multiple Reports 126
Multiple Establishments 21, 22, 23
Munitions 53, 74, 112, 117
N
National Security Exemption 56, 57, 58,
59,60
Non-listed Chemicals 99, 100, 101
o
Off-Site Employees 35
Office Supplies 83
Otherwise Use 44, 117
Part II Section 8.8 117, 118
Painting 89
Part of a Facility 72
PCBs Removal and Storage 102
Personal Use Exemption 83, 84, 85, 86
Persistent, Bioaccumulative, and Toxic
Chemicals 98
Physical Location 129
Physician Requests 60
Primary Activity 32, 71
Primary SIC Code 32
Primary Tenant 23
Printing Shop 84
Prisons 90
Processing 41, 44, 53, 54, 64
Product Testing 78
Prototypes 78
Q
Quality Control 73
R
Recycling 45, 113
Recycling of Munitions 53
Refueling 61, 64, 65
Batteries 66
Release 47
Release to Land 107
Remediation Activities 42, 43, 47, 48, 118,
119
Repackaging 46, 61
Reporting Thresholds 6, 26, 28
Roads 93
Royalty Fees 15
SIC Codes 19, 27, 32, 50, 134
Sludges 113
Specialty Chemicals 82
Spent Munitions 112
74
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Key Words by Question Number INDEX
Stationary Crane 89
Stockpiles 107
Storage/Transfer Operations 108
Storage 46, 53, 107
Storm Water 123
Structural Component Exemption 87, 88, 89
Supplier Identification 134
T
Terminal Storage 46
Threshold Determinations 12, 30, 31, 36, 37,
38, 40, 41, 43,44, 45,
46,49, 51,77, 102,
105, 106, 121
Tier II Report 58
Toxic Chemical 98
Toxic Chemicals List 96, 97
Trade Secret 59
Training 74
Transfers Between Laboratories 75, 76
Tribal Issues 10, 29
TRIS Database 126
TSDFs 112, 114
V
Vessels 18
w
Warehouses 41
Waste Broker 116
Waste Management Activities 113, 114, 116,
117, 122
Waste Oil 93
Waste Treatment 109
Wastewater Treatment 85, 115
75
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